Postoperative acute respiratory distress syndrome in randomized controlled trials.

BACKGROUND: Acute respiratory distress syndrome is a potentially fatal postoperative complication. We aimed to estimate temporal trends of the representation of patients with postoperative acute respiratory distress syndrome in clinical trials, determine their distinct clinical features, and identify predictors of mortality. METHODS: This is a secondary analysis of 7 randomized controlled clinical trials conducted by the Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome Network and the Clinical Trials Network for the Prevention and Early Treatment of Acute Lung Injury. Patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome were classified into a postoperative acute respiratory distress syndrome group (ie, patients who had undergone elective surgery in the immediate period before trial enrollment) and a non-postoperative acute respiratory distress syndrome group. RESULTS: Out of 5,316 patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome, 256 (4.8%) had postoperative acute respiratory distress syndrome. Representation of postoperative acute respiratory distress syndrome in trials gradually declined from 2000 to 2011, but it remained stable afterward at 2.7%. Postoperative acute respiratory distress syndrome was associated with lower 90-day mortality (24.6% vs 30.9%, P = .032) than non-postoperative acute respiratory distress syndrome, even after adjusting for age, acute respiratory distress syndrome severity, usage of vasopressors at baseline, and the study publication year (hazard ratio 0.63, 95% confidence interval 0.49-0.82). Age (odds ratio 1.07, 95% confidence interval 1.04-1.09), immunosuppression (odds ratio 4.12, 95% confidence interval 1.43-11.86), and positive fluid balance (odds ratio 1.09, 95% confidence interval 1.04-1.14) were associated with 90-day mortality among patients with postoperative acute respiratory distress syndrome. CONCLUSION: Representation of postoperative acute respiratory distress syndrome in trials of the Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome Network and the Clinical Trials Network for the Prevention and Early Treatment of Acute Lung Injury gradually declined from 2000 to 2011 but remained stable afterward. Postoperative acute respiratory distress syndrome was associated with lower mortality than non-postoperative acute respiratory distress syndrome. These findings may put both temporal trends and the prognosis of postoperative acute respiratory distress syndrome in perspective. Also, positive fluid balance was associated with the mortality of patients with postoperative acute respiratory distress syndrome.

Ceftazidime-Avibactam To Treat Life-Threatening Infections by Carbapenem-Resistant Pathogens in Critically Ill Mechanically Ventilated Patients.

Data on the effectiveness of ceftazidime-avibactam (CAZ-AVI) in critically ill, mechanically ventilated patients are limited. The present retrospective observational cohort study, which was conducted in two general intensive care units (ICUs) in central Greece, compared critically ill, mechanically ventilated patients suffering from carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) infections receiving CAZ-AVI to patients who received appropriate available antibiotic therapy. Clinical and microbiological outcomes and safety issues were evaluated. A secondary analysis in patients with bloodstream infections (BSIs) was conducted. Forty-one patients that received CAZ-AVI (the CAZ-AVI group) were compared to 36 patients that received antibiotics other than CAZ-AVI (the control group). There was a significant improvement in the Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) score on days 4 and 10 in the CAZ-AVI group compared to that in the control group (P = 0.006, and P = 0.003, respectively). Microbiological eradication was accomplished in 33/35 (94.3%) patients in the CAZ-AVI group and 21/31 (67.7%) patients in the control group (P = 0.021), and clinical cure was observed in 33/41 (80.5%) versus 19/36 (52.8%) patients (P = 0.010), respectively. The results were similar in the BSI subgroups for both outcomes (P = 0.038 and P = 0.014, respectively). The 28-day survival was 85.4% in the CAZ-AVI group and 61.1% in the control group (log-rank test = 0.035), while there were 2 and 12 relapses in the CAZ-AVI and control groups, respectively (P = 0.042). A CAZ-AVI-containing regime was an independent predictor of survival and clinical cure (odds ratio [OR] = 5.575 and P = 0.012 and OR = 5.125 and P = 0.004, respectively), as was illness severity. No significant side effects were recorded. In conclusion, a CAZ-AVI-containing regime was more effective than other available antibiotic agents for the treatment of CRE infections in the high-risk, mechanically ventilated ICU population evaluated.