RESUMO
OBJECTIVES: To determine the effect of a single dose of gentamicin on the incidence and persistence of acute kidney injury (AKI) in patients with sepsis in the emergency department (ED). METHODS: We retrospectively studied patients with sepsis in the ED in three hospitals. Local antibiotic guidelines recommended a single dose of gentamicin as part of empirical therapy in selected patients in one hospital, whereas the other two hospitals did not. Multivariate analysis was used to evaluate the effect of gentamicin and other potential risk factors on the incidence and persistence of AKI after admission. AKI was defined according to the KDIGO (Kidney Disease Improving Global Outcomes) criteria. RESULTS: Of 1573 patients, 571 (32.9%) received a single dose of gentamicin. At admission, 181 (31.7%) of 571 of the gentamicin-treated and 228 (22.8%) of 1002 of the non-gentamicin-treated patients had AKI (p < 0.001). After admission, AKI occurred in 64 (12.0%) of 571 patients who received gentamicin and in 82 (8.9%) of 1002 people in the control group (p 0.06). Multivariate analysis showed that shock (odds ratio (OR), 2.72; 95% CI, 1.31-5.67), diabetes mellitus (OR, 1.49; 95% CI, 1.001-2.23) and higher baseline (i.e. before admission) serum creatinine levels (OR, 1.007; 95% CI, 1.005-1.009) were associated with the development of AKI after admission, but not receipt of gentamicin (OR, 1.29; 95% CI, 0.89-1.86). Persistent AKI was rare in both the group that received gentamicin (16/260, 6.2%) and the group that did not (15/454, 3.3%, p 0.09). CONCLUSIONS: With regard to renal function, a single dose of gentamicin in patients with sepsis in the ED is safe. The development of AKI after admission was associated with shock, diabetes mellitus and higher baseline creatinine level.
RESUMO
Cardiac disease is not easy to recognise in general practice. An echocardiogram is an excellent way to provide information about left ventricular mass and diastolic (dys)function and the presence of valvular heart disease. To improve diagnostic care of cardiac patients, an open access echocardiography service was established in the referral area of our hospital, where general practitioners were able to ask for an echocardiogram without referring the patient to the cardiologist. Between December 2002 and October 2006 echocardiograms were requested for 471 patients. Thirteen percent of the patients referred for dyspnoea and 3% of patients with a cardiac murmur had a left ventricular ejection fraction <40%. In 28% of patients no cardiac abnormality could be found. If we looked at the prevalence of hypertension in the referred patients, this was very high with a prevalence of up to 60% in the older age groups. If we included hypertension in the analysis, only 16% of patients had no structural cardiac or vascular abnormality. The study shows that the advantage of open access echocardiography in the Netherlands is that the general practitioner is able to make a better diagnosis and unnecessary referrals of patients with suspected cardiac disease can be avoided. (Neth Heart J 2007;15:342-7.).
RESUMO
One of the non-invasive techniques used in the diagnosis of patients with peripheral arterial occlusive disease is the measurement of the Ankle-Arm Systolic Pressure Ratio ("AA-Ratio"). The magnitude of different sources of measurement variation, relevant to clinical practice as well as multi-observer studies, was estimated from a random effects analysis of variance model. Thirty-five GPs and 24 practice assistants performed 503 AA-Ratio measurements on nine patients over a period of nine weeks, using pocket Doppler devices. When the AA-Ratio is used for diagnostic purposes, a 95% prediction interval consisting of the measured value +/- 15-20% AA-Ratio has to be taken into account. Furthermore, when the AA-Ratio is used in the follow-up of a patient with vascular disease, the difference between two subsequent measurements has to be at least 15.6-19.0% AA-Ratio to have an 80% certainty that this difference is not due to (intra-observer) measurement error.
