Observational study of the relative efficacy of insulin-glucose treatment for hyperkalaemia in patients with liver cirrhosis.

OBJECTIVES: To determine if liver cirrhosis is associated with reduced efficacy of insulin-glucose treatment in moderate to severe hyperkalaemia. DESIGN: Retrospective, cohort study. SETTING: Two secondary and one tertiary care hospital at a large metropolitan healthcare network in Melbourne, Australia. PARTICIPANTS: This study included 463 adults with a mean age of 68.7±15.8 years, comprising 79 patients with cirrhosis and 384 without cirrhosis as controls, who received standard insulin-glucose treatment for a serum potassium ≥6.0 mmol/L from October 2016 to March 2020. Patients were excluded if they received an insulin infusion, or if there was inadequate follow-up data for at least 6 hours after IDT due to death, lost to follow-up or inadequate biochemistry monitoring. The mean Model for End-stage Liver Disease score in patients with cirrhosis was 22.2±7.5, and the distribution of the Child-Pugh score for cirrhosis was: class A (24%), class B (46%), class C (30%). OUTCOME MEASURES: The primary outcome was the degree of potassium lowering and the secondary outcome was the proportion of patients who achieved normokalaemia, within 6 hours of treatment. RESULTS: The mean pretreatment potassium for the cohort was 6.57±0.52 mmol/L. After insulin-glucose treatment, mean potassium lowering was 0.84±0.58 mmol/L in patients with cirrhosis compared with 1.33±0.75 mmol/L for controls (p<0.001). The proportion of patients achieving normokalaemia was 33% for patients with cirrhosis, compared with 53% for controls (p=0.001). By multivariable regression, on average, liver cirrhosis was associated with a reduced potassium lowering effect of 0.42 mmol/L (95% CI 0.22 to 0.63 mmol/L, p<0.001) from insulin-glucose treatment, after adjusting for age, serum creatinine, cancer, pretreatment potassium level, ß-blocker use and cotreatments (sodium polystyrene sulfonate, salbutamol, sodium bicarbonate). CONCLUSIONS: Our observational data suggest reduced efficacy of insulin-glucose treatment for hyperkalaemia in patients with cirrhosis.

Observational cohort study of the triggers, diagnoses and outcomes of the medical emergency team (MET) response in adult psychiatry inpatients colocated with acute medical services in Australia.

OBJECTIVES: Medical emergencies in psychiatric inpatients are challenging due to the model of care and limited medical resources. The study aims were to determine the triggers and outcomes of a medical emergency team (MET) call in psychiatric wards, and the risk factors for MET activation and mortality. DESIGN: Retrospective multisite cohort study. SETTING: Psychiatry units colocated with acute medical services at three major metropolitan hospitals in Melbourne, Australia. PARTICIPANTS: We studied 487 adult inpatients who experienced a total of 721 MET calls between January 2015 and January 2020. Patients were relatively young (mean age, 45 years) and had few medical comorbidities, but a high prevalence of smoking, excessive alcohol intake and illicit drug use. OUTCOME MEASURES: We performed a descriptive analysis of the triggers and outcomes (transfer rates, investigations, final diagnosis) of MET calls. We used logistic regression to determine the factors associated with the primary outcome of inpatient mortality, and the secondary outcome of the need for specific medical treatment compared with simple observation. RESULTS: The most common MET triggers were a reduced Glasgow Coma Scale, tachycardia and hypotension, and 49% of patients required transfer. The most frequent diagnosis was a drug adverse effect or toxidrome, followed by infection and dehydration. There was a strong association between a leave of absence and MET calls, tachycardia and the final diagnosis of drug adverse effects. Mortality occurred in 3% after MET calls. Several baseline and MET clinical variables were associated with mortality but a model with age (per 10 years, OR 1.61, 95% CI 1.29 to 2.01) and hypoxia (OR 3.59, 95% CI 1.43 to 9.04) independently predicted mortality. CONCLUSION: Vigilance is required in patients returning from day leave, and drug adverse effects remain a challenging problem in psychiatric units. Hypoxic older patients with cardiovascular comorbidity have a higher risk of death.

Severe Tachycardia Associated with Psychotropic Medications in Psychiatric Inpatients: A Study of Hospital Medical Emergency Team Activation.

The use of antipsychotic medications is associated with side effects, but the occurrence of severe tachycardia (heart rate ≥ 130 per minute) is not well described. The aim of this study was to determine the frequency and strength of the association between antipsychotic use and severe tachycardia in an inpatient population of patients with mental illness, while considering factors which may contribute to tachycardia. We retrospectively analyzed data from 636 Medical Emergency Team (MET) calls occurring in 449 psychiatry inpatients in three metropolitan hospitals co-located with acute medical services, and used mixed-effects logistic regression to model the association between severe tachycardia and antipsychotic use. The median age of patients was 42 years and 39% had a diagnosis of schizophrenia or psychotic disorder. Among patients who experienced MET calls, the use of second-generation (atypical) antipsychotics was commonly encountered (70%), but the use of first-generation (conventional) antipsychotics was less prevalent (10%). Severe tachycardia was noted in 22% of all MET calls, and sinus tachycardia was the commonest cardiac rhythm. After adjusting for age, anticholinergic medication use, temperature >38 °C and hypoglycemia, and excluding patients with infection and venous thromboembolism, the odds ratio for severe tachycardia with antipsychotic medication use was 4.09 (95% CI: 1.64 to 10.2).

The Association Between Illicit Drug Use and the Duration of Renal Replacement Therapy in Patients With Acute Kidney Injury From Severe Rhabdomyolysis.

Background and Aims: Acute kidney injury is a known complication of severe rhabdomyolysis. In patients who present to hospital with rhabdomyolysis, illicit drug use is associated with a higher risk of acute kidney injury needing renal replacement therapy (RRT), independent of the peak serum creatine kinase level. The aim of this study was to assess if RRT duration and renal outcomes were also worse in illicit drug use-associated rhabdomyolysis. Methods: We conducted a cohort study of adult patients who presented to Monash Health (Jan 2011-June 2020) with rhabdomyolysis and required RRT. Patients with isolated myocardial injury and cardiac arrest were excluded. We used survival analysis to examine the time to RRT independence, utilizing the Fine-Gray competing risks regression and death as the competing event. A subdistribution hazard ratio (SHR) < 1.0 represents a relatively greater duration of RRT and a worse outcome. Results: We included 101 patients with a mean age of 58 years, of which 17% were cases associated with illicit drug use. The median peak creatine kinase level was 5,473 U/L (interquartile range, 1,795-17,051 U/L). Most patients (79%) initiated RRT within 72 h of admission, at a median serum creatinine of 537 µmol/L (interquartile range, 332-749 µmol/L). In the competing risks analysis, the estimated SHR was 1.48 (95% CI: 0.78-2.84, P = 0.23) for illicit drug use, 0.87 (95% CI: 0.76-0.99, P = 0.041) for the log-transformed peak creatine kinase, and 0.41 (95% CI: 0.25-0.67, P < 0.001) for sepsis. A 50% cumulative incidence of RRT independence occurred at 11 days (95% CI: 8-16 days). Only 5% of patients remained on RRT at 3 months. Conclusion: In rhabdomyolysis-associated acute kidney injury, it is unlikely that patients with illicit drug use-associated rhabdomyolysis require a longer duration of RRT compared to patients with rhabdomyolysis from other causes.

Virtual Reality for Pediatric Needle Procedural Pain: Two Randomized Clinical Trials.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the efficacy and safety of a virtual reality distraction for needle pain in 2 common hospital settings: the emergency department (ED) and outpatient pathology (ie, outpatient laboratory). The control was standard of care (SOC) practice. STUDY DESIGN: In 2 clinical trials, we randomized children aged 4-11 years undergoing venous needle procedures to virtual reality or SOC at 2 tertiary Australian hospitals. In the first study, we enrolled children in the ED requiring intravenous cannulation or venipuncture. In the second, we enrolled children in outpatient pathology requiring venipuncture. In the ED, 64 children were assigned to virtual reality and 59 to SOC. In pathology, 63 children were assigned to virtual reality and 68 to SOC; 2 children withdrew assent in the SOC arm, leaving 66. The primary endpoint was change from baseline pain between virtual reality and SOC on child-rated Faces Pain Scale-Revised. RESULTS: In the ED, there was no change in pain from baseline with SOC, whereas virtual reality produced a significant reduction in pain (between-group difference, -1.78; 95% CI, -3.24 to -0.317; P = .018). In pathology, both groups experienced an increase in pain from baseline, but this was significantly less in the virtual reality group (between-group difference, -1.39; 95% CI, -2.68 to -0.11; P = .034). Across both studies, 10 participants experienced minor adverse events, equally distributed between virtual reality/SOC; none required pharmacotherapy. CONCLUSIONS: In children aged 4-11 years of age undergoing intravenous cannulation or venipuncture, virtual reality was efficacious in decreasing pain and was safe. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Australia and New Zealand Clinical Trial Registry: ACTRN12617000285358p.