Airway management during in-hospital cardiac arrest: An international, multicentre, retrospective, observational cohort study.

AIM: To determine the type of airway devices used during in-hospital cardiac arrest (IHCA) resuscitation attempts. METHODS: International multicentre retrospective observational study of in-patients aged over 18 years who received chest compressions for cardiac arrest from April 2016 to September 2018. Patients were identified from resuscitation registries and rapid response system databases. Data were collected through review of resuscitation records and hospital notes. Airway devices used during cardiac arrest were recorded as basic (adjuncts or bag-mask), or advanced, including supraglottic airway devices, tracheal tubes or tracheostomies. Descriptive statistics and multivariable regression modelling were used for data analysis. RESULTS: The final analysis included 598 patients. No airway management occurred in 36 (6%), basic airway device use occurred at any time in 562 (94%), basic airway device use without an advanced airway device in 182 (30%), tracheal intubation in 301 (50%), supraglottic airway in 102 (17%), and tracheostomy in 1 (0.2%). There was significant variation in airway device use between centres. The intubation rate ranged between 21% and 90% while supraglottic airway use varied between 1% and 45%. The choice of tracheal intubation vs. supraglottic airway as the second advanced airway device was not associated with immediate survival from the resuscitation attempt (odds ratio 0.81; 95% confidence interval 0.35-1.8). CONCLUSION: There is wide variation in airway device use during resuscitation after IHCA. Only half of patients are intubated before return of spontaneous circulation and many are managed without an advanced airway. Further investigation is needed to determine optimal airway device management strategies during resuscitation following IHCA.

Dietary intake of advanced glycation end products (AGEs) and changes in body weight in European adults.

PURPOSE: Advanced glycation end products (AGEs) can be formed in foods by the reaction of reducing sugars with proteins, and have been shown to induce insulin resistance and obesity in experimental studies. We examined the association between dietary AGEs intake and changes in body weight in adults over an average of 5 years of follow-up. METHODS: A total of 255,170 participants aged 25-70 years were recruited in ten European countries (1992-2000) in the PANACEA study (Physical Activity, Nutrition, Alcohol, Cessation of smoking, Eating out of home in relation to Anthropometry), a sub-cohort of the EPIC (European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition). Body weight was measured at recruitment and self-reported between 2 and 11 years later depending on the study center. A reference database for AGEs was used containing UPLC-MS/MS-measured Nε-(carboxymethyl)-lysine (CML), Nε-(1-carboxyethyl)-lysine (CEL), and Nδ-(5-hydro-5-methyl-4-imidazolon-2-yl)-ornithine (MG-H1) in 200 common European foods. This reference database was matched to foods and decomposed recipes obtained from country-specific validated dietary questionnaires in EPIC and intake levels of CEL, CML, and MG-H1 were estimated. Associations between dietary AGEs intake and body weight change were estimated separately for each of the three AGEs using multilevel mixed linear regression models with center as random effect and dietary AGEs intake and relevant confounders as fixed effects. RESULTS: A one-SD increment in CEL intake was associated with 0.111 kg (95% CI 0.087-0.135) additional weight gain over 5 years. The corresponding additional weight gain for CML and MG-H1 was 0.065 kg (0.041-0.089) and 0.034 kg (0.012, 0.057), respectively. The top six food groups contributing to AGEs intake, with varying proportions across the AGEs, were cereals/cereal products, meat/processed meat, cakes/biscuits, dairy, sugar and confectionary, and fish/shellfish. CONCLUSION: In this study of European adults, higher intakes of AGEs were associated with marginally greater weight gain over an average of 5 years of follow-up.

In-bed cycling in the ICU; patient safety and recollections with motivational effects.

BACKGROUND: In-bed cycling (IBC) is gaining interest for implementation in intensive care units. Our main objective was to explore patient recollections and experiences of early mobilization, including IBC. Secondly, we aimed to examine if IBC was safe and feasible. METHODS: Eleven participants were interviewed about their experiences during their critical illnesses and active mobilization in the intensive care unit. The interviews were analyzed thematically. Six participants were also monitored for physiological reactions and adverse events during IBC while mechanically ventilated. RESULTS: From the interviews, one main theme with three subthemes was identified. The main theme was: Early mobilization gave a direction toward normalization. The three subthemes were: (1) IBC gave a feeling of control over recovery early on during the critical illness (2) Early mobilization, including IBC, with continuous support from health care professionals gave a feeling of safety and hope for recovery for the patient; and (3) Unpleasant experiences and disorientation were felt during the critical illness and IBC. Furthermore, IBC did not induce large physiological changes or major adverse events in the participants who were monitored for feasibility and safety. CONCLUSIONS: Patient interviews indicated that the patients' participation in early mobilization with emphasis on IBC motivated them to be active in their recovery to regain a good level of health after their earlier critical illness during their intensive care stay. IBC was, in this small study, safe and feasible in the two participating intensive care units.

Atelectasis is inversely proportional to transpulmonary pressure during weaning from ventilator support in a large animal model.

BACKGROUND: In mechanically ventilated, lung injured, patients without spontaneous breathing effort, atelectasis with shunt and desaturation may appear suddenly when ventilator pressures are decreased. It is not known how such a formation of atelectasis is related to transpulmonary pressure (PL ) during weaning from mechanical ventilation when the spontaneous breathing effort is increased. If the relation between PL and atelectasis were known, monitoring of PL might help to avoid formation of atelectasis and cyclic collapse during weaning. The main purpose of this study was to determine the relation between PL and atelectasis in an experimental model representing weaning from mechanical ventilation. METHODS: Dynamic transverse computed tomography scans were acquired in ten anaesthetized, surfactant-depleted pigs with preserved spontaneous breathing, as ventilator support was lowered by sequentially reducing inspiratory pressure and positive end expiratory pressure in steps. The volumes of gas and atelectasis in the lungs were correlated with PL obtained using oesophageal pressure recordings. Work of breathing (WOB) was assessed from Campbell diagrams. RESULTS: Gradual decrease in PL in both end-expiration and end-inspiration caused a proportional increase in atelectasis and decrease in the gas content (linear mixed model with an autoregressive correlation matrix; P < 0.001) as the WOB increased. However, cyclic alveolar collapse during tidal ventilation did not increase significantly. CONCLUSION: We found a proportional correlation between atelectasis and PL during the 'weaning process' in experimental mild lung injury. If confirmed in the clinical setting, a gradual tapering of ventilator support can be recommended for weaning without risk of sudden formation of atelectasis.

Target temperature 34 vs. 36°C after out-of-hospital cardiac arrest - a retrospective observational study.

BACKGROUND: Intensive care for comatose survivors of cardiac arrest includes targeted temperature management (TTM) to attenuate cerebral reperfusion injury. A recent multi-center clinical trial did not show any difference in mortality or neurological outcome between TTM targeting 33°C or 36°C after out-of-hospital-cardiac-arrest (OHCA). In our institution, the TTM target was changed accordingly from 34 to 36°C. The aim of this retrospective study was to analyze if this change had affected patient outcome. METHODS: Intensive care registry and medical record data from 79 adult patients treated for OHCA with TTM during 2010 (n = 38; 34°C) and 2014 (n = 41; 36°C) were analyzed for mortality and neurological outcome were assessed as cerebral performance category. Student's t-test was used for continuous data and Fischer's exact test for categorical data, and multivariable logistic regression was applied to detect influence from patient factors differing between the groups. RESULTS: Witnessed arrest was more common in 2010 (95%) vs. 2014 (76%) (P = 0.03) and coronary angiography was more common in 2014 (95%) vs. 2010 (76%) (P = 0.02). The number of patients awakening later than 72 h after the arrest did not differ. After adjusting for gender, hypertension, and witnessed arrest, neither 1-year mortality (P = 0.77), nor 1-year good neurological outcome (P = 0.85) differed between the groups. CONCLUSION: Our results, showing no difference between TTM at 34°C and TTM at 36°C as to mortality or neurological outcome after OHCA, are in line with the previous TTM-trial results, supporting the use of either target temperature in our institution.

Glucocorticoid receptor expression and binding capacity in patients with burn injury.

BACKGROUND: Burn injuries are associated with strong inflammation and risk of secondary sepsis which both may affect the function of the glucocorticoid receptor (GR). The aim of this study was to determine GR expression and binding capacity in leucocytes from patients admitted to a tertiary burn center. METHODS: Blood was sampled from 13 patients on admission and days 7, 14 and 21, and once from 16 healthy subjects. Patients were grouped according to the extent of burn and to any sepsis on day 7. Expression and binding capacity of GR were determined as arbitrary units using flow cytometry. RESULTS: GR expression and binding capacity were increased compared to healthy subjects in most circulating leucocyte subsets on admission irrespective of burn size. Patients with sepsis on day 7 displayed increased GR expression in T lymphocytes (51.8%, P < 0.01) compared to admission. There was a negative correlation between GR binding capacity in neutrophils and burn size after 14 days (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: GR expression and binding capacity are increased in most types of circulating leucocytes of severely burned patients on their admission to specialized burn care. If sepsis is present after 1 week, it is associated with higher GR expression in T lymphocytes and NK cells.

Plasma 25 hydroxyvitamin D level and blood gene expression profiles: a cross-sectional study of the Norwegian Women and Cancer Post-genome Cohort.

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Vitamin D deficiency has been associated with increased risk of developing several diseases, but much is unknown about the molecular effects involved. Gene expression technology is increasingly being used to elucidate molecular mechanisms related to nutritional factors, and in this study of free-living, middle-aged Norwegian women, we aimed at identifying gene expression pathways in the blood associated with vitamin D status. SUBJECTS/METHODS: Blood samples and questionnaires were collected as a part of the Norwegian Women and Cancer Post-genome Cohort (500 invited subjects, 218 included). Plasma 25 hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) concentrations were measured using high-performance liquid chromatography, and we compared groups with sufficient versus deficient vitamin D status (25(OH)D >50 nmol/l (n=66) versus <37.5 nmol/l (n=83)), to identify differences in gene expression profiles obtained using full-genome microarrays. RESULTS: In a targeted pathway-level analysis, several immunological processes, immune cell functions and major signaling pathways were differentially regulated according to vitamin D status (P<0.01). To a certain degree, results from in vitro studies reported in the literature were reflected in this population setting. CONCLUSIONS: We conclude that vitamin D status measured as 25(OH)D was associated with molecular pathways that may ultimately affect the potential onset of diseases. The use of gene expression analysis in a population setting may give valuable input to the study of effects of nutritional factors.

Clinical safety surveillance study of the safety and efficacy of long-term home treatment with ReFacto utilizing a computer-aided diary: a Nordic multicentre study.

A Nordic multicentre, open-label, non-interventional postmarketing surveillance study was carried out during a period of 24 months evaluating safety and efficacy of ReFacto as prophylactic or on-demand replacement therapy in patients with haemophilia A treated by self-medication. Fifty-seven patients were enrolled and studied for safety; efficacy was evaluated in 39 patients who received ReFacto for 24 months and recorded sufficient diary data on a hand-held computer. The compliance of using the device was good in small children, variable in adults and poor in teenagers. The fact that the overall compliance was low constituted a limitation of the number of patients with reliable diary data. Overall safety was rated as excellent or good by the clinicians for all patients at all visits and overall efficacy at 24 months evaluated to be excellent (74%) or good (26%). It was noticed that >/=50% of patients/parents reported no absences from school or work owing to bleeding episodes during the study period. Among patients on regular prophylaxis, 6 of the 30 patients (20%) receiving ReFacto experienced no bleeding episodes. A median of four bleeding episodes occurred during the 24-month study period, and 93% of the episodes were resolved with

Precipitants of post-traumatic stress disorder following intensive care: a hypothesis generating study of diversity in care.

OBJECTIVE: This prospective observational study was designed to explore the relationships between post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), patients' memories of the intensive care unit (ICU) and sedation practices. DESIGN: Prospective multi-centre follow-up study out to 3 months after ICU discharge. SETTING: Two district general hospitals and three teaching hospitals across Europe. PATIENTS AND PARTICIPANTS: Two hundred and thirty-eight recovering, post-ventilated ICU patients. INTERVENTIONS: None. MEASUREMENTS AND RESULTS: Assessment of patients' memories of ICU was undertaken at 1-2 weeks post ICU discharge. Patients' psychological recovery was assessed by examining the level of PTSD-related symptoms and rate of PTSD by 3 months post ICU. The rate of defined PTSD was 9.2%, ranging from 3.2% to 14.8% in the different study ICUs. Independent of case mix and illness severity, the factors found to be related to the development of PTSD were recall of delusional memories, prolonged sedation, and physical restraint with no sedation. CONCLUSION: The development of PTSD following critical illness is associated with a number of different precipitating factors that are in part related to how patients are cared for within intensive care. This study raises the hypothesis that the impact of care within the ICU has an impact on subsequent psychological morbidity and therefore must be assessed in future studies looking at the way patients are sedated in the ICU and how physical restraint is used.

Oleic acid lung injury: a morphometric analysis using computed tomography.

BACKGROUND: The oleic acid-induced lung injury (OAI) model is considered to represent the early phase of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). Its inherent properties are important for the design and the interpretation of interventional studies. The aim of this study was to describe the evolution of morphometric lung changes during OAI using computed tomography (CT) analysis. Furthermore, the effect of a temporary change in positive end-expiratory pressure (PEEP) was evaluated. METHODS: Fifteen anaesthetized pigs were ventilated in volume-controlled mode with a baseline PEEP of 5 cm H(2)O. Helical CT scans were taken at baseline and 1 h after oleic acid injection. The PEEP was then either increased to 10 cm H(2)O (n = 5), decreased to 0 cm H(2)O (n = 5) or kept constant (n = 5) for 30 min. For the next 30 min, the baseline PEEP level was applied in all animals before the final CT scans 2 h after the induction of OAI. Dimensional and volumetric changes were determined from radiographical attenuation values. RESULTS: There was a major decrease in gas volume and an increase in tissue volume within the first hour. A net increase in total lung volume, with a larger transverse area but no displacement of the diaphragm, was manifest after 2 h. A minor increase in volume of non-aerated lung, located to the caudal region, was observed during the second hour. The tidal volume was redistributed to the middle and apical regions. The temporary change in PEEP did not influence the morphological progress of OAI. CONCLUSION: Decreased gas volume and increased tissue volume are the dominating morphometric characteristics of oleic acid lung injury, occurring mainly within the first hour. With these changes manifest, the course of injury is not affected by a limited period of moderately changed PEEP during the second hour. The net increase of total lung volume suggests a predominance of oedema formation over airway and alveolar collapse.

Assessment of respiratory system mechanics by artificial neural networks: an exploratory study.

We evaluated 1) the performance of an artificial neural network (ANN)-based technology in assessing the respiratory system resistance (Rrs) and compliance (Crs) in a porcine model of acute lung injury and 2) the possibility of using, for ANN training, signals coming from an electrical analog (EA) of the lung. Two differently experienced ANNs were compared. One ANN (ANN(BIO)) was trained on tracings recorded at different time points after the administration of oleic acid in 10 anesthetized and paralyzed pigs during constant-flow mechanical ventilation. A second ANN (ANN(MOD)) was trained on EA simulations. Both ANNs were evaluated prospectively on data coming from four different pigs. Linear regression between ANN output and manually computed mechanics showed a regression coefficient (R) of 0.98 for both ANNs in assessing Crs. On Rrs, ANN(BIO) showed a performance expressed by R = 0.40 and ANN(MOD) by R = 0.61. These results suggest that ANNs can learn to assess the respiratory system mechanics during mechanical ventilation but that the assessment of resistance and compliance by ANNs may require different approaches.

The impact of respiratory variables on mortality in non-ARDS and ARDS patients requiring mechanical ventilation.

OBJECTIVES: Primarily, to determine if respiratory variables, assessed on a daily basis on days 1-6 after ICU admission, were associated with mortality in non-ARDS and ARDS patients with respiratory failure requiring mechanical ventilation. Secondarily, to determine non-respiratory factors associated with mortality in ARDS and non-ARDS patients. DESIGN: Prospective multicentre clinical study. SETTING: Seventy-eight intensive care units in Sweden and Iceland. PATIENTS: Five hundred twenty non-ARDS and 95 ARDS patients. MEASUREMENTS AND RESULTS: Potentially prognostic factors present at inclusion were tested against 90-day mortality using a Cox regression model. Respiratory variables (PaO2/FIO2, PEEP, mean airway pressure (MAP) and base excess (BE)) were tested against mortality using the model. Primary aim: in non-ARDS a low PaO2/FIO2 on day 1, RR (risk ratio) = 1.17, CI (95% confidence interval) (1.00; 1.36), day 4, 1.24 (1.02; 1.50), day 5, 1.25 (1.02; 1.53) and a low MAP at baseline, 1.18 (1.00; 1.39), day 2, 1.24 (1.02; 1.52), day 3, 1.33 (1.06; 1.67), day 6, 2.38 (1.11; 5.73) were significantly associated with 90-day death. Secondary aim: in non-ARDS a low age, RR = 0.77 (0.67; 0.89), female gender, 0.85 (0.74; 0.98), and low APS (acute physiologic score), 0.85 (0.73; 0.99), were associated with survival; chronic disease, 1.31 (1.12; 1.52), and non-pulmonary origin to the respiratory failure, 1.27 (1.10; 1.47), with death. In ARDS low age, RR = 0.65 CI (0.46; 0.91), and low APS, 0.65 (0.46; 0.90), were associated with survival. CONCLUSIONS: No independent significant association was seen between 90-day mortality and degree of hypoxaemia, PEEP, MAP or BE for the first full week of ICU care in either ARDS or non-ARDS. In a sub-group of non-ARDS a lower PaO2/FIO2 and MAP tended to influence mortality where a significant association was seen for 3 of 7 study days. Age, gender, APS, presence of a chronic disease and a pulmonary/non-pulmonary reason for the respiratory failure were associated with mortality in non-ARDS, while only age and APS showed a similar association in ARDS.

Cryotherapy in ankle sprains.

This study assesses recovery from ankle sprains. Thirty-seven final participants were categorized according to the severity of their injury and the use of cryotherapy (15 minutes, one to three times per day) versus heat therapy (15 minutes, one to three times per day) for a minimum of three days. Therapy commenced either less than one hour, from one to 36 hours, or greater than 36 hours after traumatic event. Sprains were graded into five categories based on severity of the injury, but only two categories, subject to conservative treatment, are considered in this study. The study showed that cryotherapy started within 36 hours after the injury was statistically more effective than heat therapy for complete and rapid recovery. Patients in a group with Grade four sprains (unable to bear weight because of pain) reached full activity in 13.2 days compared to 30.4 days in a group using cryotherapy initiated 36 hours after injury or to 33.3 days in a group using heat therapy. Therefore, early use of cryotherapy, continued with adhesive compression, is an effective treatment of ankle sprains yielding earlier complete recovery than late cryotherapy or heat therapy.

Ro 11-1430, a new retinoic acid derivative for the topical treatment of acne.

The clinical efficacy and tolerance of a new retinoic acid derivative, Ro 11-1430, in the treatment of acne vulgaris have been compared with those of tretinoin in a double-blind trial with 60 patients during 8 weeks. The efficacy of both drugs was good. Tretinoin showed a tendency to give better effect but this was not statistically significant. However, tolerance of the new derivative was better. 48 of the patients were treated with Ro 11-1430 for another 3 months with good effect and tolerance. In a long-term study, 32 patients with previous irritation of tretinoin have been treated with Ro 11-1430 between 1.5 and 17 months with good tolerance.

A clinical and bacteriological evaluation of the effect of sulphamethoxazole-trimethoprim in acne vulgaris, resistant to prior therapy with tetracyclines.

42 patients with acne vulgaris, clinically resistant to prior therapy with tetracyclines, were evaluated after therapy with sulphamethoxazole-trimethoprim (400 + 80 mg) twice daily. Initially and after 6, 12 and 18 weeks of treatment in each patient the different acne lesions were counted and pus specimens from unhealed pustules were taken for bacteriological analysis. Complete remission or excellent results were obtained in 33 patients (79%) at the end of treatment despite a relative increase of Staphylococcus hominis and Propionibacterium granulosum. These species were more resistant in agar dilution test to the combination sulphamethoxazole-trimethoprim (20:1) than other isolated species.