Impact of supplemental parenteral nutrition early during critical illness on invasive fungal infections: a secondary analysis of the EPaNIC randomized controlled trial.

OBJECTIVE: In the EPaNIC RCT (N=4640), postponing the administration of parenteral nutrition (PN) to beyond 1 week in the intensive care unit (ICU) (late-PN) reduced the number of ICU-acquired infections and the costs for antimicrobial drugs compared with initiation of PN within 24-48 hours of admission (early-PN). In a secondary analysis, we hypothesize that late-PN reduces the odds to acquire an invasive fungal infection (IFI) in the ICU. METHODS: The impact of late-PN (N=2328) versus early-PN (N=2312) on acquired IFI and on the likelihood to acquire an IFI over time was assessed in univariable and multivariable analyses. Subsequently, we performed multivariable analyses to assess the effect of the mean total daily administered calories from admission until day 3, day 5, and day 7 on the likelihood over time of acquiring an IFI. RESULTS: Fewer late-PN patients acquired an IFI compared with early-PN patients (77/2328 versus 112/2312) (p 0.008). After adjusting for risk factors, the odds to acquire an IFI and the likelihood of acquiring an IFI at any time were lower in late-PN (adjusted odds ratio 0.66, 95% CI 0.48-0.90, p 0.009; adjusted hazard ratio (HRadj) 0.70, 95% CI 0.52-0.93, p 0.02). Larger caloric amounts from admission until day 7 were associated with a higher likelihood to acquire an IFI over time (HRadj 1.09, 95% CI 1.02-1.16, p 0.009). CONCLUSION: Postponing PN to beyond 1 week and smaller caloric amounts until day 7 in the ICU reduced ICU-acquired IFIs and the likelihood to develop an IFI over time.

Recovery from AKI in the critically ill: potential confounders in the evaluation.

PURPOSE: Studies on recovery from acute kidney injury (AKI) in ICU patients yield variable results. We assessed the impact of different recovery definitions, of different exclusion criteria, and of imputing missing baseline creatinine on AKI recovery in a heterogeneous ICU population. METHODS: Secondary analysis of the EPaNIC database. Recovery of kidney function in patients who developed AKI in ICU was assessed at hospital discharge. We studied recovery rates of different AKI stages with different definitions of recovery after inclusion or exclusion of non-survivors and in patients with or without chronic kidney disease (CKD). In addition, the impact of imputing missing baseline creatinine was investigated. RESULTS: A total of 1310 AKI patients were studied of which 977 were discharged alive from hospital. Rate of complete recovery (absence of KDIGO criteria) was markedly higher in survivors than in all AKI patients (79.5 vs 67.0%), especially for more severe forms of AKI. For patients with CKD, only the need for renal replacement therapy worsened kidney outcome as compared with no-CKD patients. Using stricter definitions of complete recovery significantly reduced its occurrence. New or worsening CKD occurred in 30% of AKI survivors. In no-CKD patients with available baseline creatinine, using an imputed baseline did not affect recovery. Patients with unavailable baseline creatinine were different from those with known baseline and revealed different recovery patterns. CONCLUSION: These results indicate the need for rigorous description of AKI severity, the included population, definitions, and baseline creatinine handling in reports on AKI recovery.

Diabetic muscle infarction: a rare cause of acute limb pain in dialysis patients.

Diabetic muscle infarction is a rare microangiopathic complication occurring in patients with advanced diabetes mellitus. Diabetic patients with chronic kidney disease stage Vd are prone to develop this complication. The presenting symptom is a localized painful swelling of the affected limb. Symptoms usually resolve spontaneously during the following weeks, but frequent relapse can occur and in some cases swelling may lead to compartment syndrome. Biochemical blood analyses show an elevated C-reactive protein, but creatine kinase is often normal. Diagnosis can be made on clinical presentation and imaging, with magnetic resonance imaging as the gold standard. Histology is often not contributive. Treatment consists of rest, analgesics, rigorous glycemic control and low-dose aspirin. Severe cases of compartment syndrome require fasciotomy. In the current paper, we present two diabetic patients with cystic fibrosis, who are treated with automated peritoneal dialysis and suffered from episodic lower limb infarction. We subsequently review 48 episodes of diabetic muscle infarction previously reported in the literature in patients with end-stage renal disease.