Frailty in severe COVID-19 survivors after ICU admission. A prospective and multicenter study in Mexico.

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the presence of frailty in survivors of severe COVID-19 admitted in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and followed six months after discharge. DESIGN: An observational, prospective and multicenter, nation-wide study. SETTING: Eight adult ICU across eight academic acute care hospitals in Mexico. PATIENTS: All consecutive adult COVID-19 patients admitted in the ICU with acute respiratory failure between March 8, 2020 to February 28, 2021 were included. Frailty was defined according to the FRAIL scale, and was obtained at ICU admission and 6-month after hospital discharge. INTERVENTIONS: None. MAIN VARIABLES OF INTEREST: The primary endpoint was the frailty status 6-months after discharge. A regression model was used to evaluate the predictors during ICU stay associated with frailty. RESULTS: 196 ICU survivors were evaluated for basal frailty at ICU admission and were included in this analysis. After 6-months from discharge, 164 patients were evaluated for frailty: 40 patients (20.4%) were classified as non-frail, 67 patients (34.2%) as pre-frail and 57 patients (29.1%) as frail. After adjustment, the need of invasive mechanical ventilation was the only factor independently associated with frailty at 6 month follow-up (Odds Ratio [OR] 3.70, 95% confidence interval 1.40-9.81, P = .008). CONCLUSIONS: Deterioration of frailty was reported frequently among ICU survivors with severe COVID-19 at 6-months. The need of invasive mechanical ventilation in ICU survivors was the only predictor independently associated with frailty.

Reclutamiento alveolar agresivo en el SDRA: más sombras que luces / Aggressive alveolar recruitment in ARDS: more shadows than lights

Reclutamiento alveolar en el síndrome de distrés respiratorio agudo (SDRA) se define como la entrada de gas en zonas previamente no ventiladas o en zonas pobremente ventiladas. El reclutamiento alveolar durante una maniobra de reclutamiento (MR) dependerá de la duración de la maniobra, del tejido pulmonar reclutable, del balance entre reclutamiento de áreas colapsadas y sobredistensión de las áreas ventiladas. La estimación del reclutamiento alveolar se realiza con la tomografía computarizada de tórax y,a pie de cama, con la construcción de curvas de volumen y presión, la ecografía pulmonar y la tomografía por impedancia. La evidencia científica nos indica que la utilización de las MR en pacientes con SDRA sigue sujeta a controversia. Estudios aleatorizados del SDRA o bien no han demostrado beneficio o bien han revelado un incremento de la mortalidad y, por ello, no se recomienda su uso rutinario. (AU)

Alveolar recruitment in acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is defined as the penetration of gas into previously unventilated areas or poorly ventilated areas. Alveolar recruitment during recruitment maneuvering (RM) depends on the duration of the maneuver, the recruitable lung tissue, and the balance between the recruitment of collapsed areas and over-insufflation of the ventilated areas. Alveolar recruitment is estimated using computed tomography of the lung and, at the patient bedside, through assessment of the recruited volume using pressure-volume curves and assessing lung morphology with pulmonary ultrasound and/or impedance tomography. The scientific evidence on RM in patients with ARDS remains subject to controversy. Randomized studies on ARDS have shown no benefit or have even reflected an increase in mortality. The routine use of RM is therefore not recommended. (AU)