Prognostic Value of D-dimer to Lymphocyte Ratio (DLR) in Hospitalized Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Patients: A Validation Study in a National Cohort.

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to validate the role of the D-dimer to lymphocyte ratio (DLR) for mortality prediction in a large national cohort of hospitalized coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients. METHODS: A retrospective, multicenter, observational study that included hospitalized patients due to SARS-CoV-2 infection in Spain was conducted from March 2020 to March 2022. All biomarkers and laboratory indices analyzed were measured once at admission. RESULTS: A total of 10,575 COVID-19 patients were included in this study. The mean age of participants was 66.9 (±16) years, and 58.6% (6202 patients) of them were male. The overall mortality rate was 16.3% (n = 1726 patients). Intensive care unit admission was needed in 10.5% (n = 1106 patients), non-invasive mechanical ventilation was required in 8.8% (n = 923 patients), and orotracheal intubation was required in 7.5% (789 patients). DLR presented a c-statistic of 0.69 (95% CI, 0.68-0.71) for in-hospital mortality with an optimal cut-off above 1. Multivariate analysis showed an independent association for in-hospital mortality for DLR > 1 (adjusted OR 2.09, 95% CI 1.09-4.04; p = 0.03); in the same way, survival analysis showed a higher mortality risk for DLR > 1 (HR 2.24; 95% CI 2.03-2.47; p < 0.01). Further, no other laboratory indices showed an independent association for mortality in multivariate analysis. CONCLUSIONS: This study confirmed the usefulness of DLR as a prognostic biomarker for mortality associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection, being an accessible, cost-effective, and easy-to-use biomarker in daily clinical practice.

Potential risk of medication discrepancies and reconciliation errors at admission and discharge from an inpatient medical service.

BACKGROUND: Medication discrepancies, defined as unexplained variations among drug regimens at care transitions, are common. Some are unintended and cause reconciliation errors that are potentially detrimental for patients. OBJECTIVE: To determine the prevalence of medication discrepancies and reconciliation errors at admission and discharge in hospitalized patients and explore risk factors for reconciliation errors and their potential clinical impact. METHODS: An observational prospective study was conducted at a general teaching hospital. Patients who were admitted to the internal medicine service and were receiving chronic preadmission treatment were included in the study. Preadmission treatment was compared with the treatment prescribed on admission (first 48 hours) and at hospital discharge, and discrepancies and reconciliation errors were identified. The primary endpoint was the presence of reconciliation errors at admission and/or discharge. Potential risk factors (patient-, medication-, and system-related) for reconciliation errors were analyzed using a multivariate logistic regression model. RESULTS: Of the 120 patients enrolled in the study between April and August 2009, 109 (90.8%) showed 513 discrepancies. The prevalence of patients with reconciliation errors was 20.8% (95% CI 13.6 to 28.1). Intended medication discrepancies were more frequent at admission (96.6%) than at discharge (75.5%), while reconciliation errors were more frequent at discharge (24.5%) than at admission (3.4%). The prevalence ratio (admission vs discharge) was 2.4 (95% CI 1.9 to 3.0) for discrepancies and 0.65 (95% CI 0.32 to 1.32) for reconciliation errors. The logistic regression analysis revealed an association between the number of discrepancies at admission (OR 1.21; 95% CI 1.01 to 1.44) and age (OR 1.05; 95% CI 0.99 to 1.10) and an increased risk of reconciliation errors. CONCLUSIONS: Medication reconciliation strategies should focus primarily on avoiding errors at discharge. Since medication discrepancies at admission may predispose patients to reconciliation errors, early detection of such discrepancies would logically reduce the risk of reconciliation errors. Medication reconciliation programs must implement a process for gathering accurate preadmission drug histories and must submit this information to a critical assessment of patients' needs.

[Streptococcal toxic shock syndrome: ten years' experience at a tertiary hospital]. / Síndrome del shock tóxico estreptocócico: experiencia de los últimos 10 años en un hospital terciario.

INTRODUCTION: In the last two decades there has been a reported increase in the incidence of streptococcal toxic shock syndrome (STSS). The objective of this study was to determine the clinical and epidemiological characteristics of this infection. METHODS: Retrospective study of all cases of STSS diagnosed at a single tertiary hospital over the last ten years. RESULTS: We report 13 cases of STSS (8 men, mean age 62 years). The mean annual incidence was 0.19 episodes/100,000 population from 1994 to 1998 and 0.53 episodes/100,000 population from 1999 to 2003 (p = 0.059). All patients had at least one underlying disease and there were no intravenous drug users. The most common portals of entry were the skin and soft tissues (85%) and all but one patient had a positive blood culture. Two cases were nosocomial and five patients required surgery (amputation and/or debridement). There was a high mortality rate (85%) and a rapid course from onset to death; nine patients died within four days after establishing the diagnosis. CONCLUSION: The incidence of SSTS has increased over the last five years at our hospital. Elderly patients with underlying medical conditions were more susceptible to acquiring this infection. Early mortality was very high.