Objective To examine the adrenal function of critically ill patients received mechanical ventilation, and explore the relationship between the occurrence of relative adrenal insufficiency ( RAI) and weaning outcome.Methods Critically ill patients who were mechanically ventilated over 48 hours were enrolled in this study. Every patient was given one shot of corticotrophin 250 μg intravenously on the first day of admission and the first day of spontaneous-breathing-trial ( SBT) . Plasma contisol level was detected by radio-immunoassay before ( T0 ) and 30 minutes ( T30 ) after the shot. Meanwhile the following parameters were recorded including APACHEⅡ, age, and cause of disease, etc. RAI was defined as the difference between T0 and T30 ≤9 μg/dL. Receiver operating characteristic ( ROC) curve was used to evaluate the accuracy of the indicators towards the weaning outcome. Results A total of 45 patients with mechanical ventilation were recruited. The successful weaning group consisted 29 patients and the failure weaning group consisted 16 patients. The incidence of RAI in the successful weaning group ( 37.9% , 11/ 29) was significantly lower than that in the failure weaning group ( 75.0% , 12 /16) ( P=0. 017) . On the first day of admission, there was no significant difference of Δcortisol between the successful weaning group and the failure weaning group [ ( 10.3 ±5.7) μg/dL vs. ( 7.5 ±4.5) μg/dL, P=0.100) . On the first SBT day, Δcortisol of the successful weaning group was significantly higher than that in the failure weaning group [ ( 10.9 ±5.1) μg/dL vs. ( 4.9 ±2.9) μg/dL, P= 0.043] . Logistic regression analysis showed that Δcortisol was an independent risk factor of weaning. ROC curve analysis showed that on the first SBT day, the area under the curve of Δcortisol was 0.872; The sensitivity and the specificity of accurate judgmentwere 0.813 and 0.828 if Δcortisol ≤6. 95 μg/dL. Conclusions The occurrence of RAI is common in critically ill patients with mechanical ventilation. The adrenal function affects the outcome of weaning, and Δcortisol may be used as an important predictive indicator for weaning outcome.
In recent years, with the development of neuroimaging and the improvement of people’s awareness, the incidence of cerebral venous sinus thrombosis (CVST) has been increasing year by year. CVST with venous infarction or haemorrhage is severe, accounting for about 60% of CVST, and its clinical manifestations are serious. The current therapies including anticoagulation and intravascular treatment have not significantly improved the prognosis of severe CVST patients. The incidence of long-term poor prognosis (modified Rankin scale score≥2) is up to 56.1%. Recent research indicates that inflammation may be an important factor leading to severe CVST and is significantly associated with poor prognosis. Anti-inflammatory treatment with glucocorticoids may provide a novel method for severe CVST, but further clinical studies are needed to verify it. This paper introduces the relationship between inflammation and severe CVST in order to explore the feasibility of glucocorticoid for severe CVST.
ObjectiveTo investigate the clinical value of peripheral blood vitamin D level in predicting the outcome of weaning from mechanical ventilation in critically ill patients.MethodsA total of 130 critically ill patients who undergoing mechanical ventilation for more than 48 hours in our hospital were recruited from June 2014 to June 2017. Serum 25(OH)D3 was detected on admission and before spontaneous breathing test (SBT) meanwhile general clinical data and laboratory examination indexes were recorded. The cases were divided into a successful weaning group and a failure weaning group according to the outcome of weaning from mechanical ventilation. Logistic regression equation was used to analyze the relationship between vitamin D level and failure weaning, and a receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was used to analyze the predictive value for failure weaning.ResultsThere were 46 patients with failure weaning among 130 patients (35.38%). Compared with the successful weaning group, the failure weaning group had significantly higher Acute Physiology and Chronic Health EvaluationⅡ score, longer duration in intensive care unit, higher respiratory rate, higher rapid shallow breathing index, higher C-reactive protein, higher N-terminal prohormone of brain natriuretic peptide, higher serum creatinine, and significantly lower albumin (all P<0.05). 25(OH)D3 level classifications on admission and before SBT in the failure weaning group were worse than those in the successful weaning group (P<0.05). 25(OH)D3 levels of the failure weaning group were lower than those of the successful weaning group [on admission: (18.16±4.33) ng/ml vs. (21.60±5.25) ng/ml, P<0.05; before SBT: (13.50±3.52) ng/mlvs. (18.61±4.30) ng/ml, P<0.05]. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that 25(OH)D3 levels on admission and before SBT were independent risk factors for failure weaning (OR values were 2.257 and 2.613, respectively, both P<0.05). ROC curve analysis showed that areas under ROC curve were 0.772 and 0.836, respectively, with sensitivities of 80.3% and 85.2%, specificities of 69.0% and 71.0%, respectively.Conclusions25(OH)D3 deficiency or insufficiency is common in critically ill patients. The lower the level of vitamin D, the higher the risk of failure weaning. So it may be an independent predictor of failure weaning.
Objective To explore the influence of different withdrawal time of trachea cannula on percutaneous dilational tracheostomy (PDT) in critically ill patients. Methods In this study, we retrospectively analyzed the clinical data of 185 critically ill patients experienced PDT, who had been admitted to the adult mixed ICU of Xiaolan Hospital of Southern Medical University from January 2015 to July 2017. The patients were divided into an early PDT group (EPDT group) and a delayed PDT group (DPDT group) according to the timing of withdrawing trachea cannula. Operation information such as operation time, blood loss and the incidence of complications were collected and compared between the two groups. Results Between the EPDT group and the DPDT group, there were no obvious differences in operation time (minutes: 6.5±2.6 vs. 7.3±3.5), amount of blood loss (ml: 5.2±2.8 vs. 6.0±3.4) or conversion to traditional operation (1.9% vs. 2.4%) (all P>0.05). Compared with the EPDT group, the DPDT group patients experienced more fluctuation of intraoperative vital signs, used more dose of sedative and analgesic drugs, and experienced higher occurrence of aspiration (18.3%vs. 5.6%), balloon burst (13.4% vs. 2.9%), guide-wire placing difficulty (11.0% vs. 1.9%) and tracheostomy cannula placing difficulty (14.6% vs. 2.9%) (all P<0.05). There were no statistical significances in postoperative complications such as postoperative-hemorrhage, pneumothorax, pneumoderm, the posterior tracheal injury or incision infection between the two groups (allP<0.05). More patients acquired postoperative pulmonary infection in the DPDT group than the EDPD group (12.2%vs. 5.8%, P>0.05), and there was no statistical significances in mechanical ventilation time between the two groups (days: 5.5±3.0vs. 6.0±2.5, P>0.05). Conclusions The operation and complications of PDT in critically ill patients are influenced by the timing of withdrawing trachea cannula. The standard procedure of withdrawing trachea cannula preoperatively may offer better clinical operability and lower technical risk.
ObjectiveTo systematically review the incidence and influencing factors of early enteral nutritional feeding interruptions in critically ill patients. MethodsThe PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, Cochrane Library, CNKI, WanFang Data and CBM databases were electronically searched to collect observational studies on the early enteral nutritional feeding interruptions in critically ill patients from inception to January 2, 2024. Two reviewers independently screened literature, extracted data and assessed the risk of bias of the included studies. Meta-analysis was then performed by using Stata 17.0 software. ResultsA total of 12 studies including 1 121 patients were included. Meta-analysis showed that the incidence of early enteral nutritional feeding interruptions in critically ill patients was 75.0% (95%CI 64.0% to 84.0%). Influenced by feeding intolerance, airway management, tube problems, radiological examination, and endoscopy, surgery and so on, interruptions of early enteral nutritional feeding frequently occur in critically ill patients. ConclusionCurrent evidence shows that early enteral feeding interruptions in critically ill patients are affected by many factors, and the incidence is high. Due to the limited quality and quantity of the included studies, more high-quality studies are needed to verify the above conclusion.
Objective To evaluate the effects and safety of procalcitonin(PCT)-guided algorithms of antibiotic therapy in critically ill patients in intensive care unit (ICU). Methods Literatures in English and Chinese concerning randomized controlled trials(RCTs) on PCT-guided algorithms of antibiotic therapy in critically ill patients was retrieved by electronic and manual search. All related data were extracted. Meta-analysis was conducted using the statistical software RevMan 5.3 on the basis of strict quality evaluation. Results Eight RCTs involving 2708 ICU patients were included, with 1360 patients in the PCT-guided group and 1348 patients in the control group. Compared with the control group, PCT-guided algorithms were associated with a significant reduction in the duration of antibiotic therapy (MD -2.44 days, 95%CI -3.25 to -1.62, P < 0.00001), and the occurrence of adverse reaction of antibiotics was also lower (RR=0.74, 95%CI 0.56 to 0.97, P=0.03), however the mortality exhibited no difference between the PCT-guided group and the control group (RR=1.00, 95%CI 0.89 to 1.13, P=0.99). Conclusion PCT-guided algorithms can shorten the duration of antibiotic therapy and reduce the occurrence of adverse reaction in critically ill patients without significant effect on mortality.
Continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT) is the treatment of choice for critically ill patients with hemodynamic instability who require renal replacement therapy. This review summarizes the impact of CRRT treatment on nutritional support in critically ill patients, including: energy increase caused by citrate-based anticoagulants, energy loss caused by glucose-free replacement fluid and dialysate, a large amount of amino acids loss in the effluent, and the influences on the way of lipid emulsion administration, capacity, electrolyte, vitamins, and trace elements. It is hoped that the intensive care unit doctors, nephrologists, and nutritionists can fully cooperate to determine the CRRT prescription and the nutritional support prescription.
Objective To evaluate the effect of exogenous melatonin and its analogues on the prevention of delirium in critically ill patients by meta-analysis. Methods Randomized controlled trials of exogenous melatonin and its analogues in the prevention of delirium in critically ill patients were searched by computer from the Cochrane Library, PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Chongqing VIP, Wanfang, and SinoMed databases. The trial group was treated with melatonin or its analogues, while the control group was treated with placebo. The retrieval period was from the establishment of database to January 14th, 2021. Two researchers independently evaluated the literature quality, and meta-analysis was performed using RevMan 5.4 software. Results A total of 11 randomized controlled trials containing 1177 patients were enrolled, including 588 patients in the trial group and 589 patients in the control group. The results showed that exogenous melatonin and its analogues could reduce the occurrence of delirium in critically ill patients [odds ratio (OR)=0.45, 95% confidence interval (CI) (0.22, 0.91), P=0.03] and shorten the time of mechanical ventilation [standard mean difference (SMD)=−0.49, 95%CI (−0.94, −0.03), P=0.04], while might not affect the mortality rate [OR=0.73, 95%CI (0.46, 1.17), P=0.19] or length of intensive care unit stay [SMD=−0.05, 95%CI (−0.26, 0.15), P=0.61]. Conclusions The current evidence shows that exogenous melatonin and its analogues have some effect on reducing the occurrence of delirium and shortening the duration of mechanical ventilation in critically ill patients, and have no significant effect on reducing the mortality or length of intensive care unit stay. The above conclusions need to be confirmed by more high-quality studies.
Malnutrition is directly related to the outcomes of critically ill children. Providing ideal nutritional treatment can reduce the high catabolic state caused by the critically ill, reduce oxidative damage and regulate immune response, then improving clinical prognosis. Optimized nutritional supply for critically ill children has been transformed from auxiliary support to one of the important treatment methods. Enteral nutrition is the preferred way to provide nutrition, but parenteral nutrition is the only method of supplement and replacement when the supply of enteral nutrition is insufficient or deficient. This article reviews the timing of parenteral nutrition initiation, protein and amino acids in parenteral nutrition, the mechanism of possible adverse effects in early parenteral nutrition, and issues related to parenteral nutrition in premature infants, in order to help clinicians in pediatric intensive care unit improve the evaluation and management of parenteral nutrition use.
ObjectiveTo investigate and analyze the strategies for choosing venous access devices for critically ill patients. MethodsThe medical staffs in ICU were required to fulfill a questionnaire on the knowledge and application of venous access devices in critically ill patients in May 2015.A descriptive statistical analysis was carried out on the answers generated from the questionnaire using SPSS 19.0 software. ResultsA total of 50 questionnaires were distributed randomly and 46 valid questionnaires were recovered.The effective response rate was 92.0%.The proportion of junior, intermediate and senior medical staffs was 80.4%, 13.0% and 6.6%, respectively.The proportion of doctors and nurses was 39.1% and 60.9%, respectively.The average seniority was (5.7±4.9)years.The proportion of ICU medical staffs who were acquainted with PIV, ACVC, PICC, TCVC, PORT and Midline was 100.0%, 100.0%, 100.0%, 69.6%, 43.5% and 13.0%, respectively.The proportion of ICU medicial staffs who would take the styles of drug, the time of treatment, the patients' condition and the costs into consideration when choosing venous access devices was 100.0%, 100.0%, 64.0% and 18.0%, respectively.91.3% and 39.1% of ICU medical staffs would choose PIV and ACVC respectively if the time of treatment was less than 1 week.56.5%, 69.6% and 26.1% of ICU medical staffs would choose PIV, ACVC and PICC respectively if the time of treatment was between 1 and 4 weeks.30.4%, 39.1%, 82.6% and 32.6% of ICU medical staffs would choose PIV, ACVC, PICC and PORT respectively if the time of treatment was more than 4 weeks.52.2% of ICU medical staffs were acquaint with the styles and the indication of antibiotic coating central venous catheter.The main reasons for infusion failure were poor vascular condition (91.3%), old age (52.2%), skin lesions (39.1%) and pipeline plugging (26.1%).The main reasons for choosing the peripheral vein were lower risk of infection (87.0%), short-term treatment (82.6%), common transfusion (78.3%) and antibiotic treatment (47.8%).The main reasons for choosing central venous infusion were irritant drugs (82.6%), peripheral vascular puncture difficulty (69.6%), long-term infusion (65.2%) and hemodynamic monitor (56.5%). ConclusionsIt is difficult to establish a vascular access for critically ill patients.The ICU medical staffs are experienced to PIV, ACVC and PICC but not to Midline, TCVC and PORT.A comprehensive evaluation is essential to choose a suitable and reliable venous access device for critically ill patients.