Improved rates of postoperative ischemia, completeness of aneurysm occlusion and neurological deficits in elective clipping of anterior circulation aneurysms over the past 20 years - association with technical improvements.

BACKGROUND/PURPOSE: Several periprocedural adjuncts for elective surgical aneurysm treatment have been introduced over the last 20 years to increase safety and efficacy. Besides the introduction of IONM in the late-1990s, ICG-videoangiography (ICG-VAG) since the mid-2000s and intraoperative CT-angiography/-perfusion (iCT-A/-P) since the mid-2010s are available. We aimed to clarify whether the introduction of ICG-VAG and iCT-A/-P resulted in our department in a stepwise improvement in the rate of radiologically detected postoperative ischemia, complete aneurysm occlusion and postoperative new deficits. METHODS: Patients undergoing microsurgical clip occlusion for unruptured anterior circulation aneurysms between 2000 and 2019 were included, with ICG-VAG since 2009 and iCT-A/-P (for selected cases) since 2016. Baseline characteristics and treatment-related morbidity/outcome focusing on differences between the three distinct cohorts (cohort-I: pre-ICG-VAG-era, cohort-II: ICG-VAG-era, cohort-III: ICG-VAG&iCT-A/-P-era) were analyzed. RESULTS: 1391 patients were enrolled (n = 74 were excluded), 779 patients were interventionally treated, 538 patients were surgically clipped by a specialized vascular team (cohort-I n = 167, cohort-II n = 284, cohort-III n = 87). Aneurysm size was larger in cohort-I (8.9 vs. 7.5/6.8 mm; p < 0.01) without differences concerning age (mean:55years), gender distribution (m: f = 1:2.6) and aneurysm location (MCA:61%, ICA:18%, ACA/AcomA:21%). There was a stepwise improvement in the rate of radiologically detected postoperative ischemia (16.2vs.12.0vs.8.0%; p = 0.161), complete aneurysm occlusion (68.3vs.83.6vs.91.0%; p < 0.01) and postoperative new deficits (10.8vs.7.7vs.5.7%; p = 0.335) from cohort-I to -III. After a mean follow-up of 12months, a median modified Rankin scale of 0 was achieved in all cohorts. DISCUSSION: Associated with periprocedural technical achievements, surgical outcome in elective anterior circulation aneurysm surgery has improved in our service during the past 20 years.

Balanced volatile sedation with isoflurane in critically ill patients with aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage - a retrospective observational study.

Introduction: In patients with severe aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) deep sedation is often used early in the course of the disease in order to control brain edema formation and thus intracranial hypertension. However, some patients do not reach an adequate sedation depth despite high doses of common intravenous sedatives. Balanced sedation protocols incorporating low-dose volatile isoflurane administration might improve insufficient sedation depth in these patients. Methods: We retrospectively analyzed ICU patients with severe aneurysmal SAH who received isoflurane in addition to intravenous anesthetics in order to improve insufficient sedation depth. Routinely recorded data from neuromonitoring, laboratory and hemodynamic parameters were compared before and up to 6 days after initiation of isoflurane. Results: Sedation depth measured using the bispectral index improved in thirty-six SAH patients (-15.16; p = 0.005) who received additional isoflurane for a mean period of 9.73 ± 7.56 days. Initiation of isoflurane sedation caused a decline in mean arterial pressure (-4.67 mmHg; p = 0.014) and cerebral perfusion pressure (-4.21 mmHg; p = 0.013) which had to be balanced by increased doses of vasopressors. Patients required increased minute ventilation in order to adjust for the increase in PaCO2 (+2.90 mmHg; p < 0.001). We did not detect significant increases in mean intracranial pressure. However, isoflurane therapy had to be terminated prematurely in 25% of the patients after a median of 30 h due to episodes of intracranial hypertension or refractory hypercapnia. Discussion: A balanced sedation protocol including isoflurane is feasible for SAH patients experiencing inadequately shallow sedation. However, therapy should be restricted to patients without impaired lung function, hemodynamic instability and impending intracranial hypertension.

Towards model-informed precision dosing of piperacillin: multicenter systematic external evaluation of pharmacokinetic models in critically ill adults with a focus on Bayesian forecasting.

PURPOSE: Inadequate piperacillin (PIP) exposure in intensive care unit (ICU) patients threatens therapeutic success. Model-informed precision dosing (MIPD) might be promising to individualize dosing; however, the transferability of published models to external populations is uncertain. This study aimed to externally evaluate the available PIP population pharmacokinetic (PopPK) models. METHODS: A multicenter dataset of 561 ICU patients (11 centers/3654 concentrations) was used for the evaluation of 24 identified models. Model performance was investigated for a priori (A) predictions, i.e., considering dosing records and patient characteristics only, and for Bayesian forecasting, i.e., additionally including the first (B1) or first and second (B2) therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM) samples per patient. Median relative prediction error (MPE) [%] and median absolute relative prediction error (MAPE) [%] were calculated to quantify accuracy and precision. RESULTS: The evaluation revealed a large inter-model variability (A: MPE - 135.6-78.3% and MAPE 35.7-135.6%). Integration of TDM data improved all model predictions (B1/B2 relative improvement vs. A: |MPE|median_all_models 45.1/67.5%; MAPEmedian_all_models 29/39%). The model by Kim et al. was identified to be most appropriate for the total dataset (A/B1/B2: MPE - 9.8/- 5.9/- 0.9%; MAPE 37/27.3/23.7%), Udy et al. performed best in patients receiving intermittent infusion, and Klastrup et al. best predicted patients receiving continuous infusion. Additional evaluations stratified by sex and renal replacement therapy revealed further promising models. CONCLUSION: The predictive performance of published PIP models in ICU patients varied considerably, highlighting the relevance of appropriate model selection for MIPD. Our differentiated external evaluation identified specific models suitable for clinical use, especially in combination with TDM.

Noninvasive Assessment of Arterial Pulse-Pressure Variation During General Anesthesia: Clinical Evaluation of a New High-Fidelity Upper Arm Cuff.

OBJECTIVES: To compare noninvasive pulse-pressure variation (PPV) measurements obtained from a new high-fidelity upper arm cuff using a hydraulic coupling technique to corresponding intraarterial PPV measurements. DESIGN: The authors used prospective multicenter comparison and development studies for the new high-fidelity upper arm cuff. SETTING: The study was performed in the departments of Anesthesiology at the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München Hospital, the University Hospital of Bonn, and the RoMed Hospital in Rosenheim (all Germany). PARTICIPANTS: A total of 153 patients were enrolled, undergoing major abdominal surgery or neurosurgery with mechanical ventilation. For the evaluation of PPV, 1,467 paired measurements in 107 patients were available after exclusion due to predefined quality criteria. INTERVENTIONS: Simultaneous measurements of PPV were performed from a reference femoral arterial catheter (PPVref) and the high-fidelity upper arm cuff (PPVcuff). The new device uses a semirigid conical shell. It incorporates a hydraulic sensor pad with a pressure transducer, leading to a tissue pressure-pulse contour with all characteristics of an arterial- pulse contour. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: The comparative analysis of the included measurements showed that PPVref and PPVcuff were closely correlated (r = 0.92). The mean of the differences between PPVref and PPVcuff was 0.1 ± 2.0%, with 95% limits of agreement between -4.1% and 3.9%. To track absolute changes in PPV >2%, the concordance rate between the 2 methods was 93%. CONCLUSIONS: The new high-fidelity upper arm cuff method provided a clinically reliable estimate of PPV.

The prevalence of sepsis-induced coagulopathy in patients with sepsis - a secondary analysis of two German multicenter randomized controlled trials.

BACKGROUND: Sepsis and septic shock are frequently accompanied by coagulopathy. Since the sepsis-induced coagulopathy (SIC) score was first described, subsequent studies from Asia revealed a SIC prevalence of 40-60%. In Europe, however, SIC prevalence in patients fulfilling sepsis criteria according to the third international consensus definition (SEPSIS-3) has not yet been evaluated. METHODS: The Critical Care Trials Group of the German Sepsis Competence Network (SepNet) conducted a secondary analysis of two randomized controlled trials. Only patients fulfilling sepsis criteria according SEPSIS-3 were included in this secondary analysis. In a two step approach, SIC prevalence was determined in 267 patients with sepsis but not septic shock (at the time of inclusion) from the "Effect of Hydrocortisone on Development of Shock Among Patients With Severe Sepsis" (HYPRESS) trial. Then, we estimated SIC prevalence in 1,018 patients from the "Effect of Sodium Selenite Administration and Procalcitonin-Guided Therapy on Mortality in Patients With Severe Sepsis or Septic Shock" (SISPCT) trial using a simplified SIC score based on the platelet-SIC-subscore (PSSC). Study aims were to assess (i) the prevalence of SIC in patients with SEPSIS-3, (ii) the association of SIC with 90-day mortality and morbidity, (iii) the time when patients become SIC positive during the course of sepsis, and (iv) the value of the PSSC for predicting SIC. RESULTS: In the HYPRESS trial, SIC prevalence was 22.1% (95% confidence interval [CI] 17.5-27.5%). The estimated SIC prevalence in the SISPCT trial was 24.2% (95% CI 21.6-26.9%). In the HYPRESS trial, SIC was associated with significantly higher 90-day mortality (13.9% vs. 26.8%, p = 0.027) and morbidity. Logistic regression analysis adjusted for age, sex, treatment arm, and (SIC-adapted) SOFA score confirmed the negative association of SIC with survival (p = 0.011). In the SISPCT trial, increased PSSCs were associated with higher 90-day mortality (PSSC 0: 34.4%, PSSC 1: 40.5%, PSSC 2: 53.3%; p < 0.001). In both trials, SIC was already present at sepsis diagnosis or occurred during the following 4 days. CONCLUSIONS: SIC is a clinically relevant complication of sepsis. Although it might be less frequent than previously reported, its occurrence is associated with higher morbidity and mortality and should be interpreted as an early warning sign.

Do higher alarm thresholds for arterial blood pressure lead to less perioperative hypotension? A retrospective, observational cohort study.

Arterial blood pressure is one of the vital signs monitored mandatory in anaesthetised patients. Even short episodes of intraoperative hypotension are associated with increased risk for postoperative organ dysfunction such as acute kidney injury and myocardial injury. Since there is little evidence whether higher alarm thresholds in patient monitors can help prevent intraoperative hypotension, we analysed the blood pressure data before (group 1) and after (group 2) the implementation of altered hypotension alarm settings. The study was conducted as a retrospective observational cohort study in a large surgical centre with 32 operating theatres. Alarm thresholds for hypotension alarm for mean arterial pressure (MAP) were altered from 60 (before) to 65 mmHg for invasive measurement and 70 mmHg for noninvasive measurement. Blood pressure data from electronic anaesthesia records of 4222 patients (1982 and 2240 in group 1 and 2, respectively) with 406,623 blood pressure values undergoing noncardiac surgery were included. We analysed (A) the proportion of blood pressure measurements below the threshold among all measurements by quasi-binomial regression and (B) whether at least one blood pressure measurement below the threshold occurred by logistic regression. Hypotension was defined as MAP < 65 mmHg. There was no significant difference in overall proportions of hypotensive episodes for mean arterial pressure before and after the adjustment of alarm settings (mean proportion of values below 65 mmHg were 6.05% in group 1 and 5.99% in group 2). The risk of ever experiencing a hypotensive episode during anaesthesia was significantly lower in group 2 with an odds ratio of 0.84 (p = 0.029). In conclusion, higher alarm thresholds do not generally lead to less hypotensive episodes perioperatively. There was a slight but significant reduction of the occurrence of intraoperative hypotension in the presence of higher thresholds for blood pressure alarms. However, this reduction only seems to be present in patients with very few hypotensive episodes.

Patient-Level Meta-Analysis of Low-Dose Hydrocortisone in Adults with Septic Shock.

BACKGROUND: Trials and study-level meta-analyses have failed to resolve the role of corticosteroids in the management of patients with septic shock. Patient-level meta-analyses may provide more precise estimates of treatment effects, particularly subgroup effects. METHODS: We pooled individual patient data from septic shock trials investigating the adjunctive use of intravenous hydrocortisone. The primary outcome was 90-day all-cause mortality, and it was also analyzed across predefined subgroups. Secondary outcomes included mortality at intensive care unit and hospital discharge, at 28 and 180 days, and vasopressor-, ventilator-, and organ failure­free days. Adverse events included superinfection, muscle weakness, hyperglycemia, hypernatremia, and gastroduodenal bleeding. RESULTS: Of 24 eligible trials (n=8528), 17 (n=7882) provided individual patient data, and 7 (n=5929) provided 90-day mortality. The marginal relative risk (RR) for 90-day mortality of hydrocortisone versus placebo was 0.93 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.82 to 1.04; P=0.22; moderate certainty). It was 0.86 (95% CI, 0.79 to 0.92) for hydrocortisone with fludrocortisone and 0.96 (95% CI, 0.82 to 1.12) without fludrocortisone. There was no significant differential treatment effect across subgroups. Hydrocortisone was associated with little to no difference in any of the secondary outcomes except vasopressor-free days (mean difference, 1.24 days; 95% CI, 0.74 to 1.73; high certainty). Hydrocortisone may not be associated with an increase in the risk of superinfection (RR, 1.04; 95% CI, 0.95 to 1.15; low certainty), hyperglycemia (RR, 1.05; 95% CI, 0.98 to 1.12; low certainty), or gastroduodenal bleeding (RR, 1.11; 95% CI, 0.83 to 1.48; low certainty). Hydrocortisone may be associated with an increase in the risk of hypernatremia (RR, 2.01; 95% CI, 1.56 to 2.60; low certainty) and muscle weakness (n=2647; RR, 1.73; 95% CI, 1.49 to 1.99; low certainty). CONCLUSIONS: In this patient-level meta-analysis, hydrocortisone compared with placebo was not associated with reduced mortality for patients with septic shock. (Funded by "Programme d'Investissements d'Avenir," a research Professorship from the National Institute of Health and Care Research, Leadership Fellowships from the National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia, and Emerging Leaders Fellowship from the National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia; PROSPERO registration number, CRD42017062198.)

Corticotropin-stimulated steroid profiles to predict shock development and mortality in sepsis: From the HYPRESS study.

RATIONALE: Steroid profiles in combination with a corticotropin stimulation test provide information about steroidogenesis and its functional reserves in critically ill patients. OBJECTIVES: We investigated whether steroid profiles before and after corticotropin stimulation can predict the risk of in-hospital death in sepsis. METHODS: An exploratory data analysis of a double blind, randomized trial in sepsis (HYPRESS [HYdrocortisone for PRevention of Septic Shock]) was performed. The trial included adult patients with sepsis who were not in shock and were randomly assigned to placebo or hydrocortisone treatment. Corticotropin tests were performed in patients prior to randomization and in healthy subjects. Cortisol and precursors of glucocorticoids (17-OH-progesterone, 11-desoxycortisol) and mineralocorticoids (11-desoxycorticosterone, corticosterone) were analyzed using the multi-analyte stable isotope dilution method (LC-MS/MS). Measurement results from healthy subjects were used to determine reference ranges, and those from placebo patients to predict in-hospital mortality. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Corticotropin tests from 180 patients and 20 volunteers were included. Compared to healthy subjects, patients with sepsis had elevated levels of 11-desoxycorticosterone and 11-desoxycortisol, consistent with activation of both glucocorticoid and mineralocorticoid pathways. After stimulation with corticotropin, the cortisol response was subnormal in 12% and the corticosterone response in 50% of sepsis patients. In placebo patients (n = 90), a corticotropin-stimulated cortisol-to-corticosterone ratio > 32.2 predicted in-hospital mortality (AUC 0.8 CI 0.70-0.88; sensitivity 83%; and specificity 78%). This ratio also predicted risk of shock development and 90-day mortality. CONCLUSIONS: In this exploratory analysis, we found that in sepsis mineralocorticoid steroidogenesis was more frequently impaired than glucocorticoid steroidogenesis. The corticotropin-stimulated cortisol-to-corticosterone ratio predicts the risk of in-hospital death. Trial registration Clinical trial registered with www. CLINICALTRIALS: gov Identifier: NCT00670254. Registered 1 May 2008, https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT00670254 .

Ecological effects of selective oral decontamination on multidrug-resistance bacteria acquired in the intensive care unit: a case-control study over 5 years.

PURPOSE: This case-control study investigated the long-term evolution of multidrug-resistant bacteria (MDRB) over a 5-year period associated with the use of selective oropharyngeal decontamination (SOD) in the intensive care unit (ICU). In addition, effects on health care-associated infections and ICU mortality were analysed. METHODS: We investigated patients undergoing mechanical ventilation > 48 h in 11 adult ICUs located at 3 campuses of a university hospital. Administrative, clinical, and microbiological data which were routinely recorded electronically served as the basis. We analysed differences in the rates and incidence densities (ID, cases per 1000 patient-days) of MDRB associated with SOD use in all patients and stratified by patient origin (outpatient or inpatient). After propensity score matching, health-care infections and ICU mortality were compared. RESULTS: 5034 patients were eligible for the study. 1694 patients were not given SOD. There were no differences in the incidence density of MDRB when SOD was used, except for more vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus faecium (0.72/1000 days vs. 0.31/1000 days, p < 0.01), and fewer ESBL-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae (0.22/1000 days vs. 0.56/1000 days, p < 0.01). After propensity score matching, SOD was associated with lower incidence rates of ventilator-associated pneumonia and death in the ICU but not with ICU-acquired bacteremia or urinary tract infection. CONCLUSIONS: Comparisons of the ICU-acquired MDRB over a 5-year period revealed no differences in incidence density, except for lower rate of ESBL-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae and higher rate of vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus faecium with SOD. Incidence rates of ventilator-associated pneumonia and death in the ICU were lower in patients receiving SOD.

Ketone Bodies Improve Human CD8+ Cytotoxic T-Cell Immune Response During COVID-19 Infection.

Severe COVID-19 is characterized by profound CD8+ T-cell dysfunction, which cannot be specifically treated to date. We here investigate whether metabolic CD8+ T-cell reprogramming by ketone bodies could be a promising strategy to overcome the immunoparalysis in COVID-19 patients. This approach was triggered by our recent pioneering study, which has provided evidence that CD8+ T-cell capacity in healthy subjects could be significantly empowered by a Ketogenic Diet. These improvements were achieved by immunometabolic rewiring toward oxidative phosphorylation. We here report similar strengthening of CD8+ T cells obtained from severely diseased COVID-19 patients: Flow cytometry and ELISA revealed elevated cytokine expression and secretion (up to + 24%) upon ketone treatment and enhanced cell lysis capacity (+ 21%). Metabolic analyses using Seahorse technology revealed upregulated mitochondrial respiratory chain activity (+ 25%), enabling both superior energy supply (+ 44%) and higher mitochondrial reactive oxygen species signaling. These beneficial effects of ketones might represent evolutionary conserved mechanisms to strengthen human immunity. Our findings pave the road for metabolic treatment studies in COVID-19.

Does the cytokine adsorber CytoSorb® reduce vancomycin exposure in critically ill patients with sepsis or septic shock? a prospective observational study.

BACKGROUND: Hemadsorption of cytokines is used in critically ill patients with sepsis or septic shock. Concerns have been raised that the cytokine adsorber CytoSorb® unintentionally adsorbs vancomycin. This study aimed to quantify vancomycin elimination by CytoSorb®. METHODS: Critically ill patients with sepsis or septic shock receiving continuous renal replacement therapy and CytoSorb® treatment during a prospective observational study were included in the analysis. Vancomycin pharmacokinetics was characterized using population pharmacokinetic modeling. Adsorption of vancomycin by the CytoSorb® was investigated as linear or saturable process. The final model was used to derive dosing recommendations based on stochastic simulations. RESULTS: 20 CytoSorb® treatments in 7 patients (160 serum samples/24 during CytoSorb®-treatment, all continuous infusion) were included in the study. A classical one-compartment model, including effluent flow rate of the continuous hemodialysis as linear covariate on clearance, best described the measured concentrations (without CytoSorb®). Significant adsorption with a linear decrease during CytoSorb® treatment was identified (p < 0.0001) and revealed a maximum increase in vancomycin clearance of 291% (initially after CytoSorb® installation) and a maximum adsorption capacity of 572 mg. For a representative patient of our cohort a reduction of the area under the curve (AUC) by 93 mg/L*24 h during CytoSorb® treatment was observed. The additional administration of 500 mg vancomycin over 2 h during CytoSorb® attenuated the effect and revealed a negligible reduction of the AUC by 4 mg/L*24 h. CONCLUSION: We recommend the infusion of 500 mg vancomycin over 2 h during CytoSorb® treatment to avoid subtherapeutic concentrations. Trial registration NCT03985605. Registered 14 June 2019, https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03985605.

[Update of the Surviving Sepsis Campaign guidelines 2021-What is new?] / Update der Surviving-Sepsis-Campaign-Leitlinie 2021 ­ Was ist neu?

The revised and redefined "International Guidelines for Management of Sepsis and Septic Shock 2021" of the Surviving Sepsis Campaign were published on 4 October 2021. As in the previous version from 2016, the focus of these international guidelines is on the diagnosis and acute treatment measures in sepsis. The topics long-term outcome and treatment targets for rehabilitation are extensively discussed and accompanied by specific recommendations. These recommendations and the underlying studies reflect the increasing awareness about the long-term consequences of severe diseases requiring intensive medical care. This article summarizes the updates in a clearly comprehensible form.

[SEPSIS-3.0-Is intensive care medicine ready for ICD-11?] / SEPSIS-3.0 ­ Ist die Intensivmedizin bereit für die ICD-11?

BACKGROUND: The 11th revision of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11) will come into effect in January 2022. Among other things, The Third International Consensus Definitions for Sepsis and Septic Shock (SEPSIS­3 definition) will be implemented in it. This defines sepsis as a "life-threatening organ dysfunction caused by a dysregulated host response to infection". The aim of the present secondary analysis of a survey on the topic of "sepsis-induced coagulopathy" was to evaluate whether the SEPSIS­3 definition, 4 years after its international introduction, has arrived in everyday clinical practice of intensive care units (ICU) run by anesthesiologists in Germany and thus the requirements for its use of the ICD-11 are given. METHODS: Between October 2019 and May 2020, we carried out a nationwide survey among German medical directors of ICUs. In a separate block of questions we asked about the definition of sepsis used in daily practice. In addition, we asked whether the quick-sequential (sepsis-related) organ failure assessment (qSOFA) score is used in screening for sepsis in the hospital to which to the participating ICU belongs. RESULTS: A total of 50 medical directors from anesthesiological ICUs took part in the survey. In total, the ICUs evaluated stated that they had around 14% of the high-care beds registered in Germany. The SEPSIS­3 definition is integrated into everyday clinical practice at 78.9% of the university hospitals and 84.0% of the participating teaching hospitals. In contrast, the qSOFA screening test is only used by 26.3% of the participating university hospitals, but at least 52% of the teaching hospitals and 80% of the other hospitals. CONCLUSION: The data show that both SEPSIS­3 and qSOFA have become part of everyday clinical practice in German hospitals. The cautious use of qSOFA at university hospitals with simultaneous broad acceptance of the SEPSIS­3 definition can be interpreted as an indication that the search for a suitable screening test for sepsis has not yet been completed.

[Practice of pharmaceutical thrombosis prophylaxis and anticoagulation in patients with sepsis and pre-existing anticoagulation or heparin-induced type II thrombocytopenia-Results of a nationwide survey in German intensive care units]. / Praxis der medikamentösen Thromboseprophylaxe und Antikoagulation bei Patienten mit Sepsis und vorbestehender Antikoagulation oder Heparin-induzierter Thrombozytopenie Typ II ­ Ergebnisse einer deutschlandweiten Umfrage auf Intensivstationen.

BACKGROUND: A pre-existing anticoagulation treatment and predisposing diseases for thromboembolic events represent common problems in patients with sepsis or septic shock; however, these conditions are not addressed in current national guidelines for sepsis and septic shock. One of the aims of this nationwide survey in Germany was therefore to determine how intensive care physicians deal with these problems. METHODS: From October 2019 to May 2020, we conducted a nationwide survey among German medical directors of intensive care units (ICU) addressing anticoagulation and drug-based prophylaxis of venous thromboembolism (VTE) in patients with sepsis and sepsis-induced coagulopathy. One focus was the procedure for patients with a pre-existing anticoagulation treatment or a previously known heparin-induced thrombocytopenia (HIT) type 2 (acute symptomatic vs. dating back years). RESULTS: In most of the participating ICUs pre-existing anticoagulation is largely continued with low molecular weight heparin preparations or unfractionated heparin. In patients with pre-existing HIT type 2 both acute symptomatic and dating back years, argatroban represents the drug of choice. There is a high degree of variability in the definition of the target values, usually being well above the range for pure VTE prophylaxis. CONCLUSION: Data on the continuation of anticoagulation beyond VTE prophylaxis with a subsequently increased risk of bleeding in patients with sepsis and septic shock is limited and treatment decisions are in many cases subject to individual consideration by the practitioner. The results of our survey imply the need for a systematic work-up of this topic in order to support daily practice in many ICUs with the required evidence.