Comparison of the effects of albumin and crystalloid on mortality among patients with septic shock: systematic review with meta-analysis and trial sequential analysis.

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to compare the effects on mortality of albumin and crystalloid, used for fluid resuscitation among adult patients with septic shock, through conducting a meta-analysis and trial sequential analysis (TSA). DESIGN AND SETTING: Meta-analysis and TSA conducted at Shanghai Jiao Tong University Affiliated Sixth People's Hospital, Shanghai, China. METHODS: Data were collected from several major databases including MEDLINE, EMBASE, Clinical Trials.gov and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials. Studies that compared the effects of albumin therapy versus crystalloid therapy on mortality among adult septic shock patients were eligible for inclusion in the analyses. The study name, year of publication, country of the trial, albumin concentration, type of crystalloid and all reported mortalities at different follow-up endpoints were extracted. RESULTS: Compared with crystalloid, albumin did not decrease all-cause mortality at the final follow-up. However, in TSA, the required information size was not achieved in all groups, which means that the effect size was not definitive and further RCTs are needed to confirm or deny these findings. CONCLUSIONS: Compared with crystalloid solutions, albumin was unable to decrease all-cause mortality. However, TSA indicated that these results could be false-negative. Additional randomized controlled trials are needed to clarify this discrepancy.

Comparison of the effects of albumin and crystalloid on mortality among patients with septic shock: systematic review with meta-analysis and trial sequential analysis

ABSTRACT BACKGROUND: This study aimed to compare the effects on mortality of albumin and crystalloid, used for fluid resuscitation among adult patients with septic shock, through conducting a meta-analysis and trial sequential analysis (TSA). DESIGN AND SETTING: Meta-analysis and TSA conducted at Shanghai Jiao Tong University Affiliated Sixth People's Hospital, Shanghai, China. METHODS: Data were collected from several major databases including MEDLINE, EMBASE, Clinical Trials.gov and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials. Studies that compared the effects of albumin therapy versus crystalloid therapy on mortality among adult septic shock patients were eligible for inclusion in the analyses. The study name, year of publication, country of the trial, albumin concentration, type of crystalloid and all reported mortalities at different follow-up endpoints were extracted. RESULTS: Compared with crystalloid, albumin did not decrease all-cause mortality at the final follow-up. However, in TSA, the required information size was not achieved in all groups, which means that the effect size was not definitive and further RCTs are needed to confirm or deny these findings CONCLUSIONS: Compared with crystalloid solutions, albumin was unable to decrease all-cause mortality. However, TSA indicated that these results could be false-negative. Additional randomized controlled trials are needed to clarify this discrepancy.

Crystalloid Fluid Choice and Clinical Outcomes in Pediatric Sepsis: A Matched Retrospective Cohort Study.

OBJECTIVE: To test the hypothesis that resuscitation with balanced fluids (lactated Ringer [LR]) is associated with improved outcomes compared with normal saline (NS) in pediatric sepsis. STUDY DESIGN: We performed matched analyses using data from 12 529 patients <18 years of age with severe sepsis/septic shock at 382 US hospitals between 2000 and 2013 to compare outcomes with vs without LR as part of initial resuscitation. Patients receiving LR were matched 1:1 to patients receiving only NS (NS group), including separate matches for any (LR-any group) or exclusive (LR-only group) LR use. Outcomes included 30-day hospital mortality, acute kidney injury, new dialysis, and length of stay. RESULTS: The LR-any group was older, received larger crystalloid volumes, and was less likely to have malignancies than the NS group. After matching, mortality was not different between LR-any (7.2%) and NS (7.9%) groups (risk ratio 0.99, 95% CI 0.98, 1.01; P = .20). There were no differences in secondary outcomes except longer hospital length of stay in LR-any group (absolute difference 2.4, 95% CI 1.4, 5.0 days; P < .001). Although LR was preferentially used as adjunctive fluid with large-volume resuscitation or first-line fluid in patients with lower illness severity, outcomes were not different after matching stratified by volume and proportionate LR utilization, including for patients in the LR-only group. CONCLUSIONS: Balanced fluid resuscitation with LR was not associated with improved outcomes compared with NS in pediatric sepsis. Although the current practice of NS resuscitation is justified, selective LR use necessitates a prospective trial to definitively determine comparative effectiveness among crystalloids.

Chloride Content of Fluids Used for Large-Volume Resuscitation Is Associated With Reduced Survival.

OBJECTIVE: We sought to investigate if the chloride content of fluids used in resuscitation was associated with short- and long-term outcomes. DESIGN: We identified patients who received large-volume fluid resuscitation, defined as greater than 60 mL/kg over a 24-hour period. Chloride load was determined for each patient based on the chloride ion concentration of the fluids they received during large-volume fluid resuscitation multiplied by the volume of fluids. We compared the development of hyperchloremic acidosis, acute kidney injury, and survival among those with higher and lower chloride loads. SETTING: University Medical Center. PATIENTS: Patients admitted to ICUs from 2000 to 2008. INTERVENTIONS: None. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Among 4,710 patients receiving large-volume fluid resuscitation, hyperchloremic acidosis was documented in 523 (11%). Crude rates of hyperchloremic acidosis, acute kidney injury, and hospital mortality all increased significantly as chloride load increased (p < 0.001). However, chloride load was no longer associated with hyperchloremic acidosis or acute kidney injury after controlling for total fluids, age, and baseline severity. Conversely, each 100 mEq increase in chloride load was associated with a 5.5% increase in the hazard of death even after controlling for total fluid volume, age, and severity (p = 0.0015) over 1 year. CONCLUSIONS: Chloride load is associated with significant adverse effects on survival out to 1 year even after controlling for total fluid load, age, and baseline severity of illness. However, the relationship between chloride load and development of hyperchloremic acidosis or acute kidney injury is less clear, and further research is needed to elucidate the mechanisms underlying the adverse effects of chloride load on survival.