Clinical outcomes of intravenous immunoglobulin therapy in COVID-19 related acute respiratory distress syndrome: a retrospective cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) has been used as an immunomodulatory therapy to counteract severe systemic inflammation in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). But its use in COVID-19 related acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is not well established. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective analysis of electronic health records of COVID-19 patients admitted to intensive care units (ICUs) at Hazm Mebaireek General Hospital, Qatar, between March 7, 2020 and September 9, 2020. Patients receiving invasive mechanical ventilation for moderate-to-severe ARDS were divided into two groups based on whether they received IVIG therapy or not. The primary outcome was all-cause ICU mortality. Secondary outcomes studied were ventilator-free days and ICU-free days at day-28, and incidence of acute kidney injury (AKI). Propensity score matching was used to adjust for confounders, and the primary outcome was compared using competing-risks survival analysis. RESULTS: Among 590 patients included in the study, 400 received routine care, and 190 received IVIG therapy in addition to routine care. One hundred eighteen pairs were created after propensity score matching with no statistically significant differences between the groups. Overall ICU mortality in the study population was 27.1%, and in the matched cohort, it was 25.8%. Mortality was higher among IVIG-treated patients (36.4% vs. 15.3%; sHR 3.5; 95% CI 1.98-6.19; P < 0.001). Ventilator-free days and ICU-free days at day-28 were lower (P < 0.001 for both), and incidence of AKI was significantly higher (85.6% vs. 67.8%; P = 0.001) in the IVIG group. CONCLUSION: IVIG therapy in mechanically ventilated patients with COVID-19 related moderate-to-severe ARDS was associated with higher ICU mortality. A randomized clinical trial is needed to confirm this observation further.

Evaluation of the risk of acute kidney injury with the use of piperacillin/tazobactam among adult critically ill patients.

PURPOSE: Piperacillin/tazobactam (PT), when combined with vancomycin, is associated with an increased risk of acute kidney injury (AKI). It is not known whether PT alone is associated with a higher incidence of AKI compared to other ß-lactams among critically ill patients. The objective of this study was to compare the incidence of AKI associated with the use of PT to other ß-lactams among adult critically ill patients METHODS: This retrospective study was conducted in the surgical and the medical intensive care units at two hospitals within Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC) in Qatar and included adult critically ill patients who received at least one dose of anti-pseudomonal ß-lactams. The primary outcome was acute kidney injury, defined using the Kidney Disease Improving Global Outcomes (KDIGO) criteria. Multiple logistic regression with adjustment for pre-specified potential confounders was used for the primary outcome analysis. RESULTS: A total of 669 patients were included in the analysis: 507 patients in the PT group and 162 patients in the control (meropenem/cefepime) group. AKI occurred in 136 (26.8%) members of the PT group and 38 (23.5%) members of the control group [odds ratio (OR) 1.2; 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.79-1.8]. The results were not significantly altered after adjusting for the pre-specified potential confounders (adjusted OR 1.38; 95% CI 0.88-2.15). CONCLUSION: In this study, PT was not associated with a higher risk of AKI compared to cefepime or meropenem among adult critically ill patients.