Association between Type of Fluid Received Prior to Enrollment, Type of Admission, and Effect of Balanced Crystalloid in Critically Ill Adults: A Secondary Exploratory Analysis of the BaSICS Clinical Trial.

Rationale: The effects of balanced crystalloid versus saline on clinical outcomes for ICU patients may be modified by the type of fluid that patients received for initial resuscitation and by the type of admission. Objectives: To assess whether the results of a randomized controlled trial could be affected by fluid use before enrollment and admission type. Methods: Secondary post hoc analysis of the BaSICS (Balanced Solution in Intensive Care Study) trial, which compared a balanced solution (Plasma-Lyte 148) with 0.9% saline in the ICU. Patients were categorized according to fluid use in the 24 hours before enrollment in four groups (balanced solutions only, 0.9% saline only, a mix of both, and no fluid before enrollment) and according to admission type (planned, unplanned with sepsis, and unplanned without sepsis). The association between 90-day mortality and the randomization group was assessed using a hierarchical logistic Bayesian model. Measurements and Main Results: A total of 10,520 patients were included. There was a low probability that the balanced solution was associated with improved 90-day mortality in the whole trial population (odds ratio [OR], 0.95; 89% credible interval [CrI], 0.66-10.51; probability of benefit, 0.58); however, probability of benefit was high for patients who received only balanced solutions before enrollment (regardless of admission type, OR, 0.78; 89% CrI, 0.56-1.03; probability of benefit, 0.92), mostly because of a benefit in unplanned admissions due to sepsis (OR, 0.70; 89% CrI, 0.50-0.97; probability of benefit, 0.96) and planned admissions (OR, 0.79; 89% CrI, 0.65-0.97; probability of benefit, 0.97). Conclusions: There is a high probability that balanced solution use in the ICU reduces 90-day mortality in patients who exclusively received balanced fluids before trial enrollment. Clinical trial registered with www.clinicaltrials.gov (NCT02875873).

Effect of Intravenous Fluid Treatment With a Balanced Solution vs 0.9% Saline Solution on Mortality in Critically Ill Patients: The BaSICS Randomized Clinical Trial.

IMPORTANCE: Intravenous fluids are used for almost all intensive care unit (ICU) patients. Clinical and laboratory studies have questioned whether specific fluid types result in improved outcomes, including mortality and acute kidney injury. OBJECTIVE: To determine the effect of a balanced solution vs saline solution (0.9% sodium chloride) on 90-day survival in critically ill patients. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: Double-blind, factorial, randomized clinical trial conducted at 75 ICUs in Brazil. Patients who were admitted to the ICU with at least 1 risk factor for worse outcomes, who required at least 1 fluid expansion, and who were expected to remain in the ICU for more than 24 hours were randomized between May 29, 2017, and March 2, 2020; follow-up concluded on October 29, 2020. Patients were randomized to 2 different fluid types (a balanced solution vs saline solution reported in this article) and 2 different infusion rates (reported separately). INTERVENTIONS: Patients were randomly assigned 1:1 to receive either a balanced solution (n = 5522) or 0.9% saline solution (n = 5530) for all intravenous fluids. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: The primary outcome was 90-day survival. RESULTS: Among 11 052 patients who were randomized, 10 520 (95.2%) were available for the analysis (mean age, 61.1 [SD, 17] years; 44.2% were women). There was no significant interaction between the 2 interventions (fluid type and infusion speed; P = .98). Planned surgical admissions represented 48.4% of all patients. Of all the patients, 60.6% had hypotension or vasopressor use and 44.3% required mechanical ventilation at enrollment. Patients in both groups received a median of 1.5 L of fluid during the first day after enrollment. By day 90, 1381 of 5230 patients (26.4%) assigned to a balanced solution died vs 1439 of 5290 patients (27.2%) assigned to saline solution (adjusted hazard ratio, 0.97 [95% CI, 0.90-1.05]; P = .47). There were no unexpected treatment-related severe adverse events in either group. CONCLUSION AND RELEVANCE: Among critically ill patients requiring fluid challenges, use of a balanced solution compared with 0.9% saline solution did not significantly reduce 90-day mortality. The findings do not support the use of this balanced solution. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT02875873.

Bundle of Coated Devices to Reduce Nosocomial Infections in the Intensive Care Unit. CRITIC Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial.

Rationale: Coated devices may reduce biofilm formation and reduce the occurrence of device-related infections in critically ill patients. A bundle of coated devices (an endotracheal tube [ETT], central venous catheter [CVC], and urinary catheter [UC]) simultaneously inserted may optimize benefits of coated devices in patients with the most severe illness.Objectives: To assess the feasibility of a randomized controlled trial on simultaneous insertion of gold/silver/palladium-coated devices versus uncoated devices in severely ill patients, which required sequential insertion of all three devices (an ETT, CVC, and UC) for support in the intensive care unit (ICU).Methods: This was a multicenter randomized controlled pilot trial. Patients who required simultaneous insertion of an ETT, CVC, and UC were randomized to treatment with coated versus uncoated devices, which were used as necessary for up to 28 days. The primary endpoint was feasibility, defined as the trial being able to enroll enough participants to have the sample size necessary for its secondary primary endpoint (estimating sepsis incidence in this population) in less than 1 year and for estimating the number of admitted patients who require simultaneous insertion of all three devices. Secondary endpoints included the incidence of sepsis and device-associated infections (ventilator-associated pneumonia, catheter-related bloodstream infection, and catheter-related urinary-tract infection) within each group as well as the number of days alive and free of antibiotics during the ICU stay. All events were adjudicated.Results: One hundred and three patients (48 in the coated-device group and 55 in the uncoated-device group) were included in the per-protocol analysis. The inclusion period was 8 months. There were 13 septic events in each group (26 in total), with an approximate incidence of sepsis of 32.3 (95% credible interval [CrI], 22.4-44.9) per 100 patient-days. The overall incidences of ventilator-associated pneumonia, catheter-related urinary-tract infection, and catheter-related bloodstream infection were 15.2 (95% CrI, 7.8-26.4), 6.3 (95% CrI, 2.4-13.7), and 7.9 (95% CrI, 3.6-15.1) per 1,000 patient-days, and incidence rates were not statistically different between groups. Patients in the coated-device group had more days alive and free of antibiotics in the ICU (28.97 d vs. 19.62 d per 100 patient-days; mean ratio, 1.48; 95% CrI, 1.16-1.89).Conclusions: Use of a bundle of coated devices as the initial treatment for of severely ill patients is feasible. Coated devices may be associated with more days alive and free of antibiotics.Clinical trial registered with www.clinicaltrials.gov (NCT03868241).