ICU-acquired infections in immunocompromised patients.

Immunocompromised patients account for an increasing proportion of the typical intensive care unit (ICU) case-mix. Because of the increased availability of new drugs for cancer and auto-immune diseases, and improvement in the care of the most severely immunocompromised ICU patients (including those with hematologic malignancies), critically ill immunocompromised patients form a highly heterogeneous patient population. Furthermore, a large number of ICU patients with no apparent immunosuppression also harbor underlying conditions altering their immune response, or develop ICU-acquired immune deficiencies as a result of sepsis, trauma or major surgery. While infections are associated with significant morbidity and mortality in immunocompromised critically ill patients, little specific data are available on the incidence, microbiology, management and outcomes of ICU-acquired infections in this population. As a result, immunocompromised patients are usually excluded from trials and guidelines on the management of ICU-acquired infections. The most common ICU-acquired infections in immunocompromised patients are ventilator-associated lower respiratory tract infections (which include ventilator-associated pneumonia and tracheobronchitis) and bloodstream infections. Recently, several large observational studies have shed light on some of the epidemiological specificities of these infections-as well as on the dynamics of colonization and infection with multidrug-resistant bacteria-in these patients, and these will be discussed in this review. Immunocompromised patients are also at higher risk than non-immunocompromised hosts of fungal and viral infections, and the diagnostic and therapeutic management of these infections will be covered. Finally, we will suggest some important areas of future investigation.

Delirium severity and outcomes of critically ill COVID-19 patients / Gravidade do delirium e desfechos de pacientes críticos com COVID-19

ABSTRACT Objective: To investigate the impact of delirium severity in critically ill COVID-19 patients and its association with outcomes. Methods: This prospective cohort study was performed in two tertiary intensive care units in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. COVID-19 patients were evaluated daily during the first 7 days of intensive care unit stay using the Richmond Agitation Sedation Scale, Confusion Assessment Method for Intensive Care Unit (CAM-ICU) and Confusion Method Assessment for Intensive Care Unit-7 (CAM-ICU-7). Delirium severity was correlated with outcomes and one-year mortality. Results: Among the 277 COVID-19 patients included, delirium occurred in 101 (36.5%) during the first 7 days of intensive care unit stay, and it was associated with a higher length of intensive care unit stay in days (IQR 13 [7 - 25] versus 6 [4 - 12]; p < 0.001), higher hospital mortality (25.74% versus 5.11%; p < 0.001) and additional higher one-year mortality (5.3% versus 0.6%, p < 0.001). Delirium was classified by CAM-ICU-7 in terms of severity, and higher scores were associated with higher in-hospital mortality (17.86% versus 34.38% versus 38.46%, 95%CI, p value < 0.001). Severe delirium was associated with a higher risk of progression to coma (OR 7.1; 95%CI 1.9 - 31.0; p = 0.005) and to mechanical ventilation (OR 11.09; 95%CI 2.8 - 58.5; p = 0.002) in the multivariate analysis, adjusted by severity and frailty. Conclusion: In patients admitted with COVID-19 in the intensive care unit, delirium was an independent risk factor for the worst prognosis, including mortality. The delirium severity assessed by the CAM-ICU-7 during the first week in the intensive care unit was associated with poor outcomes, including progression to coma and to mechanical ventilation.

RESUMO Objetivo: Investigar como a gravidade do delirium afeta pacientes graves com COVID-19 e sua associação com os desfechos. Métodos: Estudo de coorte prospectivo realizado em duas unidades de terapia intensiva terciárias no Rio de Janeiro (RJ). Os pacientes com COVID-19 foram avaliados diariamente durante os primeiros 7 dias de internação na unidade de terapia intensiva usando a escala de agitação e sedação de Richmond, a Confusion Assessment Method for Intensive Care Unit (CAM-ICU) e a Confusion Assessment Method for Intensive Care Unit-7 (CAM-ICU-7). A gravidade do delirium foi correlacionada com os desfechos e a mortalidade em 1 ano. Resultados: Entre os 277 pacientes com COVID-19 incluídos, o delirium ocorreu em 101 (36,5%) durante os primeiros 7 dias de internação na unidade de terapia intensiva e foi associado a maior tempo de internação na unidade de terapia intensiva em dias (IQ: 13 [7 - 25] versus 6 [4 - 12]; p < 0,001), maior mortalidade hospitalar (25,74% versus 5,11%; p < 0,001) e maior mortalidade em 1 ano (5,3% versus 0,6%, p < 0,001). O delirium foi classificado pela CAM-ICU-7 em termos de gravidade, e escores maiores foram associados à maior mortalidade hospitalar (17,86% versus 34,38% versus 38,46%, IC95%, valor de p < 0,001). O delirium grave foi associado a um risco maior de progressão ao coma (RC de 7,1; IC95% 1,9 - 31,0; p = 0,005) e à ventilação mecânica (RC de 11,09; IC95% 2,8 - 58,5; p = 0,002) na análise multivariada, ajustada por gravidade e fragilidade Conclusão: Em pacientes internados com COVID-19 na unidade de terapia intensiva, o delirium foi fator de risco independente para o pior prognóstico, incluindo mortalidade. A gravidade do delirium avaliada pela CAM-ICU-7 durante a primeira semana na unidade de terapia intensiva foi associada a desfechos desfavoráveis, incluindo a progressão ao coma e à ventilação mecânica.

High-value care for critically ill oncohematological patients: what do we know thus far?

The number of patients with cancer requiring intensive care unit admission is increasing around the world. The improvement in the pathophysiological understanding of this group of patients, as well as the increasingly better and more targeted treatment options for their underlying disease, has led to a significant increase in their survival over the past three decades. Within the organizational concepts, it is necessary to know what adds value in the care of critical oncohematological patients. Practices in medicine that do not benefit patients and possibly cause harm are called low-value practices, while high-value practices are defined as high-quality care at relatively low cost. In this article, we discuss ten domains with high-value evidence in the care of cancer patients: (1) intensive care unit admission policies; (2) intensive care unit organization; (3) etiological investigation of hypoxemia; (4) management of acute respiratory failure; (5) management of febrile neutropenia; (6) urgent chemotherapy treatment in critically ill patients; (7) patient and family experience; (8) palliative care; (9) care of intensive care unit staff; and (10) long-term impact of critical disease on the cancer population. The disclosure of such policies is expected to have the potential to change health care standards. We understand that it is a lengthy process, and initiatives such as this paper are one of the first steps in raising awareness and beginning a discussion about high-value care in various health scenarios.

How to use biomarkers of infection or sepsis at the bedside: guide to clinicians.

Sepsis is defined as a life-threatening organ dysfunction caused by a dysregulated host response to infection. In this context, biomarkers could be considered as indicators of either infection or dysregulated host response or response to treatment and/or aid clinicians to prognosticate patient risk. More than 250 biomarkers have been identified and evaluated over the last few decades, but no biomarker accurately differentiates between sepsis and sepsis-like syndrome. Published data support the use of biomarkers for pathogen identification, clinical diagnosis, and optimization of antibiotic treatment. In this narrative review, we highlight how clinicians could improve the use of pathogen-specific and of the most used host-response biomarkers, procalcitonin and C-reactive protein, to improve the clinical care of patients with sepsis. Biomarker kinetics are more useful than single values in predicting sepsis, when making the diagnosis and assessing the response to antibiotic therapy. Finally, integrated biomarker-guided algorithms may hold promise to improve both the diagnosis and prognosis of sepsis. Herein, we provide current data on the clinical utility of pathogen-specific and host-response biomarkers, offer guidance on how to optimize their use, and propose the needs for future research.

High-value care for critically ill oncohematological patients: what do we know thus far? / Cuidados de alto valor para pacientes oncohematológicos graves: o que sabemos até agora?

ABSTRACT The number of patients with cancer requiring intensive care unit admission is increasing around the world. The improvement in the pathophysiological understanding of this group of patients, as well as the increasingly better and more targeted treatment options for their underlying disease, has led to a significant increase in their survival over the past three decades. Within the organizational concepts, it is necessary to know what adds value in the care of critical oncohematological patients. Practices in medicine that do not benefit patients and possibly cause harm are called low-value practices, while high-value practices are defined as high-quality care at relatively low cost. In this article, we discuss ten domains with high-value evidence in the care of cancer patients: (1) intensive care unit admission policies; (2) intensive care unit organization; (3) etiological investigation of hypoxemia; (4) management of acute respiratory failure; (5) management of febrile neutropenia; (6) urgent chemotherapy treatment in critically ill patients; (7) patient and family experience; (8) palliative care; (9) care of intensive care unit staff; and (10) long-term impact of critical disease on the cancer population. The disclosure of such policies is expected to have the potential to change health care standards. We understand that it is a lengthy process, and initiatives such as this paper are one of the first steps in raising awareness and beginning a discussion about high-value care in various health scenarios.

RESUMO O número de pacientes oncológicos com necessidade de internação em unidades de terapia intensiva está aumentando em todo o mundo. A maior compreensão fisiopatológica desse grupo de pacientes, bem como opções de tratamento cada vez melhores e mais direcionadas à doença subjacente, tem levado a um aumento significativo da sobrevida nas últimas três décadas. Dentro dos conceitos organizacionais é necessário saber o que agrega valor ao cuidado de pacientes onco-hematológicos graves. As práticas terapêuticas não benéficas aos pacientes e possivelmente causadoras de danos são chamadas práticas de baixo valor, enquanto as práticas de alto valor são definidas como cuidados de alta qualidade a um custo relativamente baixo. Neste artigo discutimos dez domínios com evidências de alto valor no cuidado de pacientes com câncer: (1) políticas de internação na unidade de terapia intensiva; (2) organização da unidade de terapia intensiva; (3) investigação etiológica da hipoxemia; (4) manejo da insuficiência respiratória aguda; (5) manejo da neutropenia febril; (6) tratamento quimioterápico de urgência em pacientes graves; (7) experiência do paciente e da família; (8) cuidados paliativos; (9) cuidados com a equipe da unidade de terapia intensiva; e (10) impacto a longo prazo da doença grave na população oncológica. Esperase que a divulgação dessas políticas traga mudanças aos padrões atuais do cuidado em saúde. Entendemos que é um processo longo, e iniciativas como o presente artigo são um dos primeiros passos para aumentar a conscientização e possibilitar discussão sobre cuidados de alto valor em vários cenários de saúde.

Percepções e práticas sobre sedação superficial em pacientes sob ventilação mecânica: um inquérito sobre as atitudes de médicos intensivistas brasileiros / Perceptions and practices regarding light sedation in mechanically ventilated patients: a survey on the attitudes of Brazilian critical care physicians

RESUMO Objetivo: Caracterizar o conhecimento e as atitudes percebidas em relação às intervenções farmacológicas para sedação superficial em pacientes sob ventilação mecânica e entender as lacunas atuais, comparando a prática atual com as recomendações das Diretrizes de Prática Clínica para a Prevenção e Tratamento da Dor, Agitação/Sedação, Delirium, Imobilidade e Interrupção do Sono em Pacientes Adultos na Unidade de Terapia Intensiva. Métodos: Trata-se de estudo de coorte transversal baseado na aplicação de um questionário eletrônico centrado nas práticas de sedação. Resultados: Responderam ao inquérito 303 médicos intensivistas. A maioria dos entrevistados relatou uso de rotina de uma escala de sedação estruturada (281; 92,6%). Quase metade dos entrevistados relatou realizar interrupções diárias da sedação (147; 48,4%), e a mesma percentagem de participantes (48,0%) concordou com a afirmação de que os pacientes costumam ser sedados em excesso. Durante a pandemia da COVID-19, os participantes relataram que os pacientes tinham maior chance de receber midazolam do que antes da pandemia (178; 58,8% versus 106; 34,0%; p = 0,05); além disso, a sedação profunda foi mais comum durante a pandemia da COVID-19 (241; 79,4% versus 148; 49,0%; p = 0,01). Conclusão: Este inquérito fornece dados valiosos sobre as atitudes percebidas dos médicos intensivistas brasileiros em relação à sedação. Embora a interrupção diária da sedação fosse um conceito bem conhecido e as escalas de sedação fossem frequentemente utilizadas pelos entrevistados, foi colocado esforço insuficiente no monitoramento frequente, no uso de protocolos e na implementação sistemática de estratégias de sedação. Apesar da percepção dos benefícios associados à sedação superficial, há necessidade de identificar metas de melhoria para se proporem estratégias educacionais que melhorem as práticas atuais.

ABSTRACT Objective: To characterize the knowledge and perceived attitudes toward pharmacologic interventions for light sedation in mechanically ventilated patients and to understand the current gaps comparing current practice with the recommendations of the Clinical Practice Guidelines for the Prevention and Management of Pain, Agitation/Sedation, Delirium, Immobility, and Sleep Disruption in Adult Patients in the Intensive Care Unit. Methods: This was a cross-sectional cohort study based on the application of an electronic questionnaire focused on sedation practices. Results: A total of 303 critical care physicians provided responses to the survey. Most respondents reported routine use of a structured sedation scale (281; 92.6%). Almost half of the respondents reported performing daily interruptions of sedation (147; 48.4%), and the same percentage of participants (48.0%) agreed that patients are often over sedated. During the COVID-19 pandemic, participants reported that patients had a higher chance of receiving midazolam compared to before the pandemic (178; 58.8% versus 106; 34.0%; p = 0.05), and heavy sedation was more common during the COVID-19 pandemic (241; 79.4% versus 148; 49.0%; p = 0.01). Conclusion: This survey provides valuable data on the perceived attitudes of Brazilian intensive care physicians regarding sedation. Although daily interruption of sedation was a well-known concept and sedation scales were often used by the respondents, insufficient effort was put into frequent monitoring, use of protocols and systematic implementation of sedation strategies. Despite the perception of the benefits linked with light sedation, there is a need to identify improvement targets to propose educational strategies to improve current practices.

Characteristics and outcomes of autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplant recipients admitted to intensive care units: A multicenter study.

PURPOSE: Studies of critically ill hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) recipients have mainly been single-center and focused on allogenic HSCT recipients. We aimed to describe a cohort of autologous HSCT with an unplanned intensive care unit (ICU) admission. METHODS: This study is a retrospective cohort study of autologous HSCT performed as a treatment for a hematological malignancy, during their first unplanned ICU admission in 50 hospitals in Brazil. We assessed the hospital mortality and the association between mechanical ventilation, vasopressors, and renal replacement therapy and hospital mortality in autologous HSCT recipients, adjusted for potential confounders. RESULTS: We included 301 patients. Multiple myeloma was the most common malignancy driving to HSCT. ICU and hospital mortality were 22.9% and 37.5%, respectively. After adjustment for potential confounders, mechanical ventilation (OR = 9.10; CI 95%, 4.82-17.15) was associated with hospital mortality, but vasopressors (OR = 1.43; CI 95%, 0.77-2.64) and renal replacement therapy (OR = 1.30; CI 95%, 0.63-2.66) were not. CONCLUSIONS: In this large cohort of critically ill autologous HSCT recipients, mechanical ventilation was the only organ support-therapy associated with increased mortality in autologous HSCT recipients.

Plano de análise estatística de um ensaio clínico randomizado em cluster em unidades de terapia intensiva geral adulto no Brasil: TELE-critical care verSus usual Care On ICU PErformance (TELESCOPE) / Statistical analysis of a cluster-randomized clinical trial on adult general intensive care units in Brazil: TELE-critical care verSus usual Care On ICU PErformance (TELESCOPE) trial

RESUMO Objetivo: O ensaio TELE-critical Care verSus usual Care On ICU PErformance (TELESCOPE) visa avaliar se uma intervenção complexa por telemedicina em unidades de terapia intensiva, que se concentra em rondas multidisciplinares diárias realizadas por intensivistas a distância, reduzirá o tempo de permanência na unidade de terapia intensiva em comparação com os cuidados habituais. Métodos: O TELESCOPE é um ensaio nacional, multicêntrico, controlado, aberto, randomizado em cluster. O estudo testa a eficácia de rondas multidisciplinares diárias realizadas por um intensivista por meio de telemedicina em unidades de terapia intensiva brasileiras. O protocolo foi aprovado pelo Comitê de Ética em Pesquisa local do centro coordenador do estudo e pelo Comitê de Ética em Pesquisa local de cada uma das 30 unidades de terapia intensiva, de acordo com a legislação brasileira. O ensaio está registado no ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT03920501). O desfecho primário é o tempo de internação na unidade de terapia intensiva, que será analisado considerando o período basal e a estrutura dos dados em cluster, sendo ajustado por covariáveis predefinidas. Os desfechos exploratórios secundários incluem a classificação de desempenho da unidade de terapia intensiva, a mortalidade hospitalar, a incidência de infecções nosocomiais, o número de dias sem ventilação mecânica aos 28 dias, a taxa de pacientes que recebem alimentação oral ou enteral, a taxa de pacientes sob sedação leve ou em alerta e calmos e a taxa de pacientes sob normoxemia. Conclusão: De acordo com as melhores práticas do ensaio, divulgamos nossa análise estatística antes de bloquear a base de dados e iniciar as análises. Esperamos que essa prática de notificação evite o viés das análises e aprimore a interpretação dos resultados apresentados. Registro no ClinicalTrials.gov:NCT03920501

ABSTRACT Objective: The TELE-critical Care verSus usual Care On ICU PErformance (TELESCOPE) trial aims to assess whether a complex telemedicine intervention in intensive care units, which focuses on daily multidisciplinary rounds performed by remote intensivists, will reduce intensive care unit length of stay compared to usual care. Methods: The TELESCOPE trial is a national, multicenter, controlled, open label, cluster randomized trial. The study tests the effectiveness of daily multidisciplinary rounds conducted by an intensivist through telemedicine in Brazilian intensive care units. The protocol was approved by the local Research Ethics Committee of the coordinating study center and by the local Research Ethics Committee from each of the 30 intensive care units, following Brazilian legislation. The trial is registered with ClinicalTrials. gov (NCT03920501). The primary outcome is intensive care unit length of stay, which will be analyzed accounting for the baseline period and cluster structure of the data and adjusted by prespecified covariates. Secondary exploratory outcomes included intensive care unit performance classification, in-hospital mortality, incidence of nosocomial infections, ventilator-free days at 28 days, rate of patients receiving oral or enteral feeding, rate of patients under light sedation or alert and calm, and rate of patients under normoxemia. Conclusion: According to the trial's best practice, we report our statistical analysis prior to locking the database and beginning analyses. We anticipate that this reporting practice will prevent analysis bias and improve the interpretation of the reported results. ClinicalTrials.gov registration:NCT03920501

Uma análise de custo-efetividade de propofol versus midazolam para sedação de pacientes adultos admitidos à unidade de terapia intensiva / A cost-effectiveness analysis of propofol versus midazolam for the sedation of adult patients admitted to the intensive care unit

RESUMO Objetivo: Construir um modelo de custo-efetividade para comparar o uso de propofol com o de midazolam em pacientes críticos adultos sob uso de ventilação mecânica. Métodos: Foi construído um modelo de árvore decisória para pacientes críticos submetidos à ventilação mecânica, o qual foi analisado sob a perspectiva do sistema privado de saúde no Brasil. O horizonte temporal foi o da internação na unidade de terapia intensiva. Os desfechos foram custo-efetividade por hora de permanência na unidade de terapia intensiva evitada e custo-efetividade por hora de ventilação mecânica evitada. Foram obtidos os dados do modelo a partir de metanálise prévia. Assumiu-se que o custo da medicação estava incluído nos custos da unidade de terapia intensiva. Conduziram-se análises univariada e de sensibilidade probabilística. Resultados: Pacientes mecanicamente ventilados em uso de propofol tiveram diminuição de sua permanência na unidade de terapia intensiva e na duração da ventilação mecânica, respectivamente, em 47,97 horas e 21,65 horas. Com o uso de propofol, ocorreu redução média do custo de U$2.998,971 em comparação ao uso do midazolam. A custo-efetividade por hora de permanência na unidade de terapia intensiva evitada e por hora de ventilação mecânica evitada foi dominante, respectivamente, em 94,40% e 80,8% do tempo. Conclusão: Ocorreu diminuição significante do custo associado ao uso de propofol, no que se refere à permanência na unidade de terapia intensiva e à duração da ventilação mecânica para pacientes críticos adultos.

ABSTRACT Objective: To build a cost-effectiveness model to compare the use of propofol versus midazolam in critically ill adult patients under mechanical ventilation. Methods: We built a decision tree model for critically ill patients submitted to mechanical ventilation and analyzed it from the Brazilian private health care system perspective. The time horizon was that of intensive care unit hospitalization. The outcomes were cost-effectiveness per hour of intensive care unit stay avoided and cost-effectiveness per hour of mechanical ventilation avoided. We retrieved data for the model from a previous meta-analysis. We assumed that the cost of medication was embedded in the intensive care unit cost. We conducted univariate and probabilistic sensitivity analyses. Results: Mechanically ventilated patients using propofol had their intensive care unit stay and the duration of mechanical ventilation decreased by 47.97 hours and 21.65 hours, respectively. There was an average cost reduction of US$ 2,998.971 for propofol when compared to midazolam. The cost-effectiveness per hour of intensive care unit stay and mechanical ventilation avoided were dominant 94.40% and 80.8% of the time, respectively. Conclusion: There was a significant reduction in costs associated with propofol use related to intensive care unit stay and duration of mechanical ventilation for critically ill adult patients.

Trends in clinical profiles, organ support use and outcomes of patients with cancer requiring unplanned ICU admission: a multicenter cohort study.

PURPOSE: To describe trends in outcomes of cancer patients with unplanned admissions to intensive-care units (ICU) according to cancer type, organ support use, and performance status (PS) over an 8-year period. METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed prospectively collected data from all cancer patients admitted to 92 medical-surgical ICUs from July/2011 to June/2019. We assessed trends in mortality through a Bayesian hierarchical model adjusted for relevant clinical confounders and whether there was a reduction in ICU length-of-stay (LOS) over time using a competing risk model. RESULTS: 32,096 patients (8.7% of all ICU admissions; solid tumors, 90%; hematological malignancies, 10%) were studied. Bed/days use by cancer patients increased up to more than 30% during the period. Overall adjusted mortality decreased by 9.2% [95% credible interval (CI), 13.1-5.6%]. The largest reductions in mortality occurred in patients without need for organ support (9.6%) and in those with need for mechanical ventilation (MV) only (11%). Smallest reductions occurred in patients requiring MV, vasopressors, and dialysis (3.9%) simultaneously. Survival gains over time decreased as PS worsened. Lung cancer patients had the lowest decrease in mortality. Each year was associated with a lower sub-hazard for ICU death [SHR 0.93 (0.91-0.94)] and a higher chance of being discharged alive from the ICU earlier [SHR 1.01 (1-1.01)]. CONCLUSION: Outcomes in critically ill cancer patients improved in the past 8 years, with reductions in both mortality and ICU LOS, suggesting improvements in overall care. However, outcomes remained poor in patients with lung cancer, requiring multiple organ support and compromised PS.

Elderly patients with cancer admitted to intensive care unit: A multicenter study in a middle-income country.

BACKGROUND: Very elderly critically ill patients (ie, those older than 75 or 80 years) are an increasing population in intensive care units. However, patients with cancer have encompassed only a minority in epidemiological studies of very old critically-ill patients. We aimed to describe clinical characteristics and identify factors associated with hospital mortality in a cohort of patients aged 80 or older with cancer admitted to intensive care units (ICUs). METHODS: This was a retrospective cohort study in 94 ICUs in Brazil. We included patients aged 80 years or older with active cancer who had an unplanned admission. We performed a mixed effect logistic regression model to identify variables independently associated with hospital mortality. RESULTS: Of 4604 included patients, 1807 (39.2%) died in hospital. Solid metastatic (OR = 2.46; CI 95%, 2.01-3.00), hematological cancer (OR = 2.32; CI 95%, 1.75-3.09), moderate/severe performance status impairment (OR = 1.59; CI 95%, 1.33-1.90) and use of vasopressors (OR = 4.74; CI 95%, 3.88-5.79), mechanical ventilation (OR = 1.54; CI 95%, 1.25-1.89) and renal replacement (OR = 1.81; CI 95%, 1.29-2.55) therapy were independently associated with increased hospital mortality. Emergency surgical admissions were associated with lower mortality compared to medical admissions (OR = 0.71; CI 95%, 0.52-0.96). CONCLUSIONS: Hospital mortality rate in very elderly critically ill patients with cancer with unplanned ICU admissions are lower than expected a priori. Cancer characteristics, performance status impairment and acute organ dysfunctions are associated with increased mortality.

Organizational factors associated with adherence to low tidal volume ventilation: a secondary analysis of the CHECKLIST-ICU database.

BACKGROUND: Survival benefit from low tidal volume (VT) ventilation (LTVV) has been demonstrated for patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), and patients not having ARDS could also benefit from this strategy. Organizational factors may play a role on adherence to LTVV. The present study aimed to identify organizational factors with an independent association with adherence to LTVV. METHODS: Secondary analysis of the database of a multicenter two-phase study (prospective cohort followed by a cluster-randomized trial) performed in 118 Brazilian intensive care units. Patients under mechanical ventilation at day 2 were included. LTVV was defined as a VT ≤ 8 ml/kg PBW on the second day of ventilation. Data on the type and number of beds of the hospital, teaching status, nursing, respiratory therapists and physician staffing, use of structured checklist, and presence of protocols were tested. A multivariable mixed-effect model was used to assess the association between organizational factors and adherence to LTVV. RESULTS: The study included 5719 patients; 3340 (58%) patients received LTVV. A greater number of hospital beds (absolute difference 7.43% [95% confidence interval 0.61-14.24%]; p = 0.038), use of structured checklist during multidisciplinary rounds (5.10% [0.55-9.81%]; p = 0.030), and presence of at least one nurse per 10 patients during all shifts (17.24% [0.85-33.60%]; p = 0.045) were the only three factors that had an independent association with adherence to LTVV. CONCLUSIONS: Number of hospital beds, use of a structured checklist during multidisciplinary rounds, and nurse staffing are organizational factors associated with adherence to LTVV. These findings shed light on organizational factors that may improve ventilation in critically ill patients.