Simplified lung ultrasound protocol shows excellent prediction of extravascular lung water in ventilated intensive care patients.

INTRODUCTION: Ultrasound of the lung and quantification of B lines was recently introduced as a novel tool to detect overhydration. In the present study, we aimed to evaluate a four-region protocol of lung ultrasound to determine the pulmonary fluid status in ventilated patients in the intensive care unit. METHODS: Fifty patients underwent both lung ultrasound and transpulmonary thermodilution measurement with the PiCCO system. An ultrasound score based on number of single and confluent B lines per intercostal space was used to quantify pulmonary overhydration. To check for reproducibility, two different intensivists who were blinded as to the ultrasound pictures reassessed and classified them using the same scoring system. The results were compared with those obtained using other methods of evaluating hydration status, including extravascular lung water index (EVLWI) and intrathoracic blood volume index calculated with data from transpulmonary thermodilution measurements. Moreover, chest radiographs were assessed regarding signs of pulmonary overhydration and categorized based on a numeric rating scale. RESULTS: Lung water assessment by ultrasound using a simplified protocol showed excellent correlation with EVLWI over a broad range of lung hydration grades and ventilator settings. Correlation of chest radiography and EVLWI was less accurate. No correlation whatsoever was found with central venous pressure measurement. CONCLUSION: Lung ultrasound is a useful, non-invasive tool in predicting hydration status in mechanically ventilated patients. The four-region protocol that we used is time-saving, correlates well with transpulmonary thermodilution measurements and performs markedly better than chest radiography.

Neutropenic Sepsis in the ICU: Outcome Predictors in a Two-Phase Model and Microbiology Findings.

Objective. Patients with neutropenic sepsis have a poor prognosis. We aimed to identify outcome predictors and generate hypotheses how the care for these patients may be improved. Methods. All 12.352 patients admitted between 2006 and 2011 to the medical ICUs of our tertiary university center were screened for neutropenia; out of 558 patients identified, 102 fulfilled the inclusion criteria and were analyzed. Severity markers and outcome predictors were assessed. Results. The overall ICU mortality was 54.9%. The severity of sepsis and the number of organ failures predicted survival of the primary septic episode (APACHE II 22.8 and 29.0; SOFA 7.3 and 10.1, resp.). In the recovery phase, persistent organ damage and higher persistent C-reactive protein levels were associated with a poor outcome. Blood transfusions and CMV infection correlated with an unfavorable prognosis. Ineffective initial antibiotic therapy, fungal infections, and detection of multiresistant bacteria displayed a particularly poor outcome. Infections with coagulase-negative staphylococci and enterococci were associated with a significantly higher mortality and a high degree of systemic inflammation. Conclusion. Patients with persistent organ dysfunction show an increased mortality in the further course of their ICU stay. Early antimicrobial treatment of Gram-positive cocci may improve the outcome of these patients.

Effect of Sodium Selenite Administration and Procalcitonin-Guided Therapy on Mortality in Patients With Severe Sepsis or Septic Shock: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

IMPORTANCE: High-dose intravenous administration of sodium selenite has been proposed to improve outcome in sepsis by attenuating oxidative stress. Procalcitonin-guided antimicrobial therapy may hasten the diagnosis of sepsis, but effect on outcome is unclear. OBJECTIVE: To determine whether high-dose intravenous sodium selenite treatment and procalcitonin-guided anti-infectious therapy in patients with severe sepsis affect mortality. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: The Placebo-Controlled Trial of Sodium Selenite and Procalcitonin Guided Antimicrobial Therapy in Severe Sepsis (SISPCT), a multicenter, randomized, clinical, 2 × 2 factorial trial performed in 33 intensive care units in Germany, was conducted from November 6, 2009, to June 6, 2013, including a 90-day follow-up period. INTERVENTIONS: Patients were randomly assigned to receive an initial intravenous loading dose of sodium selenite, 1000 µg, followed by a continuous intravenous infusion of sodium selenite, 1000 µg, daily until discharge from the intensive care unit, but not longer than 21 days, or placebo. Patients also were randomized to receive anti-infectious therapy guided by a procalcitonin algorithm or without procalcitonin guidance. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: The primary end point was 28-day mortality. Secondary outcomes included 90-day all-cause mortality, intervention-free days, antimicrobial costs, antimicrobial-free days, and secondary infections. RESULTS: Of 8174 eligible patients, 1089 patients (13.3%) with severe sepsis or septic shock were included in an intention-to-treat analysis comparing sodium selenite (543 patients [49.9%]) with placebo (546 [50.1%]) and procalcitonin guidance (552 [50.7%]) vs no procalcitonin guidance (537 [49.3%]). The 28-day mortality rate was 28.3% (95% CI, 24.5%-32.3%) in the sodium selenite group and 25.5% (95% CI, 21.8%-29.4%) (P = .30) in the placebo group. There was no significant difference in 28-day mortality between patients assigned to procalcitonin guidance (25.6% [95% CI, 22.0%-29.5%]) vs no procalcitonin guidance (28.2% [95% CI, 24.4%-32.2%]) (P = .34). Procalcitonin guidance did not affect frequency of diagnostic or therapeutic procedures but did result in a 4.5% reduction of antimicrobial exposure. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: Neither high-dose intravenous administration of sodium selenite nor anti-infectious therapy guided by a procalcitonin algorithm was associated with an improved outcome in patients with severe sepsis. These findings do not support administration of high-dose sodium selenite in these patients; the application of a procalcitonin-guided algorithm needs further evaluation. TRIAL REGISTRATION: clinicaltrials.gov Identifier: NCT00832039.

Genetic loci contribute to the progression of vascular and cardiac hypertrophy in salt-sensitive spontaneous hypertension.

OBJECTIVE: The salt-sensitive Dahl rat and the spontaneously hypertensive rat develop comparable spontaneous hypertension on a low-salt diet, whereas only the salt-sensitive Dahl rat strain develops a striking increase in blood pressure and cardiovascular hypertrophy on a high-salt diet. We set out to identify quantitative trait loci (QTLs) contributing to the progression of salt-induced organ damage in hypertension by studying an F2 population derived from both strains. METHODS AND RESULTS: We determined systolic blood pressure (SBP), vascular aortic hypertrophy (AH), cardiac left ventricular (LV) hypertrophy (LVH), and LV fibrosis in 230 male F2-animals on a high-salt diet. A strong correlation between AH and LVH was found (r=0.58, P<0.0001), and genome-wide QTL mapping detected suggestive or significant QTLs in overlapping chromosomal fragments for AH and LVH on chromosomes 1, 3, and 19, respectively. A significant influence of SBP on the extent of LVH and AH was evident at all QTLs, although significant linkage to SBP (together with LVH) was only found on chromosome 9. No QTLs for LV fibrosis were detected. CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrates a strong correlation between AH and LVH in salt-sensitive hypertension and identifies QTLs contributing to the progression of cardiovascular hypertrophy in this condition.

Erdheim-Chester disease and knee pain in a dialysis patient.

Erdheim-Chester disease is a rare inflammatory condition characterized by a non-Langerhans histiocytic infiltration, involving the skeleton, nervous system, viscera, retroperitoneum and elsewhere. The aetiology is unknown. Positron emission tomography shows areas of involvement. We managed a dialysis patient with knee pain; a bone marrow specimen showed typical CD68 positive, but CD1a negative cells. We initiated interferon-α therapy although other options remain open. In our patient, the simultaneous presence of secondary hyperparathyroidism with tumorous calcifications provided an interesting additional differential diagnostic possibility regarding skeletal pain.

Artificial extracorporeal liver support therapy in patients with severe liver failure.

Severe liver failure is common and carries a high mortality risk in patients with both acute and acute-on-chronic liver failure. The failing liver constitutes a medical emergency, and in many cases liver transplantation is the only definite treatment. Extracorporeal liver support can be employed as a strategy for bridging to transplantation or recovery. This article focuses on options for artificial (nonbiological) extracorporeal treatment: single-pass albumin dialysis, fractionated plasma separation and adsorption (Prometheus(®)) and the molecular adsorbent recirculatory system. Their different principles, potential advantages and indications are discussed. Despite proven biochemical efficacy, there are little data regarding clinical end points. Thus far, molecular adsorbent recirculatory system therapy in acute and acute-on-chronic liver failure showed no survival benefit compared with standard medical therapy. Prometheus therapy showed reduced mortality in subgroups of higher severity of disease compared with standard medical therapy. Nevertheless, the value of extracorporeal liver support remains to be corroborated by further clinical studies that include the optimal timing, mode, intensity and duration of this treatment.

Extracorporeal liver support therapy with Prometheus in patients with liver failure in the intensive care unit.

Acute liver failure (ALF) and acute-on-chronic liver failure (AoCLF) are associated with a high mortality. In these patients an accumulation of both water-soluble and water-insoluble, protein-bound, metabolic waste products occurs. Conventional extracorporeal blood purification techniques based on diffusion and/or convection such as hemodialysis or hemofiltration may only eliminate small molecular weight, water-soluble compounds. In recent years, fractionated plasma separation and adsorption (FPSA) with the Prometheus system has been introduced for extracorporeal liver support therapy. To date, however, only limited data is available regarding the effect of this treatment on mortality and outcome of patients with advanced liver disease. Here we report on our experience with 23 patients with severe liver failure who were treated with Prometheus in our medical intensive care unit. Fourteen patients had AoCLF, and nine patients experienced ALF. The median bilirubin level at the start of Prometheus therapy was 30.5 mg/dL and the median Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation II (APACHE II) score was 26. During 40 individual treatment sessions lasting 5-6 h, Prometheus therapy reduced serum bilirubin levels from 23.7 mg/dL to 15.0 mg/dL (median values) (P < 0.001), and the overall survival was 26%. ALF patients had a better survival compared to AoCLF patients (44% vs. 22%; P = 0.022). Apart from one patient who developed hemodynamic instability during a treatment session, Prometheus therapy was well tolerated without relevant side-effects. In conclusion, extracorporeal liver support therapy with Prometheus is a novel and safe treatment option in patients with severe liver failure. In this series, patients with ALF showed a significantly better outcome with Prometheus therapy compared to AoCLF patients.