Outcome of older critically ill patients: a matched cohort study

BACKGROUND: Admission of older patients to intensive care units is a controversial issue. OBJECTIVE: To estimate age-associated mortality of critically ill patients. METHODS: A prospective matched cohort study in the Medical-Surgical Intensive Care Unit of a tertiary hospital was conducted. We included 100 consecutive patients older than 70 years admitted to the intensive care unit (cases) and 100 patients younger than 70 years (controls). The matching criterion was the severity of illness at admission to the intensive care unit as estimated by the simplified acute physiological score (SAPS II) without including age in its calculation. RESULTS: Mortality in the intensive care unit was higher, but not statistically significant, in the older group: 26% vs. 19% (p = 0.23). Patients older than 70 years had a longer duration of mechanical ventilation (median 7 vs. 3 days) and longer stay in the intensive care unit (median 8 vs. 5 days). There were no differences in organ dysfunctions, except for a higher incidence of respiratory failure in the older group (p < 0.001). The use of invasive procedures was similar in both groups. There were more orders for the withholding/withdrawal of treatment in patients older than 70 years (9 vs. 3%, p = 0.07). CONCLUSION: In our study, age was not related with a significant higher mortality. In the older patients included in our study the survival was greater than 70% with a similar resource utilization except for a longer stay in the intensive care unit.     

Comparison of perceived needs of family members between registered nurses and family members of critically ill patients in intensive care and neonatal intensive care units

Using the Norris and Grove (1986) questionnaire of perceived needs of families of critically ill patients, 11 registered nurses working in the neonatal intensive care unit and 19 registered nurses working in the intensive care unit of two mid-northern community hospitals provided their perceptions of family needs. Their responses were compared with responses of family members of patients in the intensive care unit (n = 25) and the (n = 24). Results suggest that regardless of unit, registered nurses' perceptions of family needs are congruent. Family members collectively and by unit ranked their needs consistently higher and in some areas differently than did the registered nurses.     

Changes in physician attitudes toward limiting care of critically ill patients

To determine whether physician attitudes toward decision making in the care of critically ill patients have changed, a survey of physicians was conducted in 1981 and repeated in 1988. Physicians in 1988 were more comfortable discussing "do-not-resuscitate" options with patients and were more likely to allow a critically ill patient to die if the patient so requested. Most physicians in both surveys believe that treatment costs should not play a role in medical decisions. Trainees in 1988 were more aggressive in their management of case studies than were faculty in 1988 or trainees in 1981. While in both years the most important factors in the decision to treat aggressively were a patient's expressed desire to live or die and the amount of patient suffering, physicians in 1988 ranked malpractice concerns as a more important determinant in their decision process compared with physicians in 1981. Significant changes in physician attitudes toward the care of critically ill patients have occurred during this decade.     

Delirium and its motoric subtypes: a study of 614 critically ill patients

OBJECTIVES: To describe the motoric subtypes of delirium in critically ill patients and compare patients aged 65 and older with a younger cohort. DESIGN: Prospective cohort study. SETTING: The medical intensive care unit (MICU) of a tertiary care academic medical center. PARTICIPANTS: Six hundred fourteen MICU patients admitted during a process improvement initiative to monitor levels of sedation and delirium. MEASUREMENTS: MICU nursing staff assessed delirium and level of consciousness in all MICU patients at least once per 12-hour shift using the Confusion Assessment Method for the Intensive Care Unit and the Richmond Agitation-Sedation Scale. Delirium episodes were categorized as hypoactive, hyperactive, and mixed type. RESULTS: Delirium was detected in 112 of 156 (71.8%) subjects aged 65 and older and 263 of 458 (57.4%) subjects younger than 65. Mixed type was most common (54.9%), followed by hypoactive delirium (43.5%) and purely hyperactive delirium (1.6%). Patients aged 65 and older experienced hypoactive delirium at a greater rate than younger patients (41.0% vs 21.6%, P<.001) and never experienced hyperactive delirium. Older age was strongly and independently associated with hypoactive delirium (adjusted odds ratio=3.0, 95% confidence interval=1.7-5.3), compared with no delirium in a model that adjusted for other important determinants of delirium including severity of illness, sedative medication use, and ventilation status. CONCLUSION: Older age is a strong predictor of hypoactive delirium in MICU patients, and this motoric subtype of delirium may be missed in the absence of active monitoring.     

床旁介入超声在老年危重患者中的初步应用

目的探讨床旁介入超声在老年危重患者诊疗中的安全性及疗效。方法入选2013年1月至2015年8月福建省立医院内科病区的危重症老年患者85例。使用便携式超声仪,对所有患者行床边超声引导下穿刺活检术或置管引流术。结果行穿刺活检术者共15例:13例诊断明确;2例无法获取明确病理诊断。行置管引流术者共70例,其中23例各类非感染性积液引流通畅,相应症状消失;47例各类感染性积液患者在置管引流术后第2天的体温、心率、白细胞数以及积液深度均得到明显改善(P0.05),病情好转。行置管引流术者中2例胸穿置管并发中等量出血。结论床旁介入超声在老年危重患者诊疗中安全、便捷,具有较好的应用价值。     

营养支持改善危重肾脏病患者营养状况的前瞻性研究

目的:调查危重肾脏病患者营养风险及营养不良发生率,前瞻性研究短期营养支持后危重肾脏病患者营养状况的变化. 方法:应用营养风险筛查2002量表(NRS2002)对2011年8月至2012年6月南京军区南京总医院全军肾脏病研究所ICU的患者进行筛查.对NRS2002评分≥3分患者行营养支持,同时测量和检测营养评价指标. 结果:466例患者完成NRS2002筛查,其中营养风险发生率87.3％,营养不良发生率25.1％.137(33.7％)例患者进入营养支持研究,其中男性76例(55.4％),女性61例(44.6％),平均年龄(40.0±17.3)岁.营养支持方式包括食物添加营养素23例(16.8％),肠内营养97例(70.8％),肠外营养2例(1.5％),肠内营养+肠外营养15例(10.9％).入院第1天、第3天、第7天,摄入热卡分别为15.4±7.3 kcal/kg、20.9±8.2 kcal/kg、22.3±8.5 kcal/kg(P =0.001);蛋白质摄入量分别为0.5±0.2g、0.6±0.3g、0.7±0.3g(P =0.001).入院第7天与第1天相比,血清白蛋白、前白蛋白、转铁蛋白、淋巴细胞计数升高明显(P=0.00l);男性及女性患者细胞内水/细胞外水比值(I/E)有不同程度提高. 结论:危重肾脏病患者营养风险发生率高达87.3％,营养不良发生率25.1％.短期营养支持后血清白蛋白、前白蛋白、转铁蛋白、淋巴细胞计数及体内水分分布异常较前改善.     

Infective and non-infective endocarditis in critically ill patients: a clinical–pathological study

The aims of this study are to estimate the incidence, the outcome and the associated risk factors of infective and non-infective endocarditis (IE and NIE, respectively) in intensive care unit (ICU) patients. We studied the post-mortem findings and the clinical data of the patients who died in our ICU between 1996 and 2010. Of the 765 reviewed autopsies, 21 patients (2.7 %) presented cardiac vegetations. These cases consisted of 12 IEs and 9 NIEs. Three patients with IE had a mechanical prosthetic valve, and in 11 cases invasive devices had been used. Multiple peripheral embolisms were discovered at autopsy. In particular, the brain appeared to be more affected in patients with IE, while pulmonary embolisms were commonly associated with NIE. Blood cultures were positive in nine patients with IE. The imaging diagnostics (transthoracic and transesophageal echocardiography) which were seldom performed in both groups, proved to be of little help. As a consequence, an IE was correctly diagnosed before death in three patients (25 %) and suspected in two other cases (17 %), while a NIE was diagnosed before death in one patient alone. In conclusions, critically ill patients admitted to general ICUs, multiple factors related both to the underlying conditions and to performed procedures can facilitate the occurrence of IE and NIE making, at the same time, their diagnosis challenging. Many cases, in fact, are diagnosed only at autopsy. Yet again, post-mortem examination proves to be an invaluable tool for the evaluation of diagnostic accuracy in critical care.     

Stress ulceration: a serious complication in critically ill patients

The incidence of gastrointestinal bleeding in critically ill patients appears to have declined over the past decade; however, it has not been shown that the incidence of stress ulceration has declined as well. The pathophysiology of stress ulceration is not totally understood, although various factors have been implicated: mucosal barrier breakdown, decreased mucosal blood flow, increased intraluminal acid, decreased epithelial regeneration, and lowered intramural pH. It is widely accepted that prevention is the cornerstone of management for stress ulceration. The critical care nurse must be aware of the importance of monitoring and maintaining a gastric pH greater than 3.5. Antacids, histamine receptor antagonists, sucralfate, and prostaglandins have all been shown to play a role in the treatment of stress ulcerations.     

Deferred consent in a minimal-risk study involving critically ill subarachnoid hemorrhage patients

INTRODUCTION:

Alterations from first-party and surrogate decision-maker consent can enhance the feasibility of research involving critically ill patients.

OBJECTIVE:

To describe the use of a deferred-consent model to enable participation of critically ill patients in a minimal-risk biomarker study.

METHODS:

A prospective observational study was conducted in which serum biomarker samples were collected three times daily over the first 14 days following aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage. Sample collection was initiated on intensive care unit admission and consent was obtained when research personnel could approach the patient or the patient’s surrogate decision maker.

RESULTS:

Twenty-seven patients were eligible for the study, of whom only five were capable of providing informed consent. Full consent was obtained for 21 (78%) patients through self- (n=4) and surrogate (n=17) consent. Partial consent or refusal (only permitting the collection of blood samples as a part of routine care or use of data) occurred in three patients. Among the 22 consents sought from surrogates, three (11%) refused participation. The refusals included the sickest patients in the cohort. Once consent was provided, no patient or surrogate withdrew consent before study completion.

DISCUSSION:

Use of a deferred consent model enabled participation of critically ill patients in a minimal-risk biomarker study with no withdrawals.

CONCLUSIONS:

Further research and enhanced awareness of the potential utility of hybrid models, including deferred consent in addition to patient or surrogate consent, in the conduct of low-risk and minimally interventional time-sensitive studies of critically ill patients are required.     

Balanced crystalloids versus saline in critically ill patients: The PRISMA study of a meta-analysis

Objective:To compare the safety of balanced crystalloids and saline among critically ill patients in intensive care unit (ICU).Methods:The Medline, EMBASE, Web of Science, Cochrane Library databases were systematically searched from the inception dates to May 17, 2020 in order to identify randomized controlled trials which evaluated the safety of balanced crystalloids and saline in critically ill patients. The primary outcome was major adverse kidney events within 30 days (MAKE30). The second outcomes included 30-day mortality, ICU mortality, In-hospital mortality, ICU length of stay, hospital length of stay, creatinine highest before discharge (mg/dl) and needs for renal replacement therapy (RRT).Results:A total of nine randomized controlled trials involving 19,578 critical ill patients fulfilled the inclusion criteria. The outcomes of this meta-analysis showed that balanced crystalloids treatment shared the same risk of MAKE30 with saline treatment among critical ill patients [RR = 0.95; 95%CI, 0.88 to 1.01; Z = 1.64 (P = .102)]. The clinical mortality which included 30-day mortality [RR = 0.92; 95%CI, 0.85 to 1.01; Z = 1.78 (P = .075)], ICU mortality [RR = 0.92; 95%CI, 0.83 to 1.02; Z = 1.67 (P = .094)] and In-hospital mortality [RR = 0.93; 95%CI, 0.71 to 1.21; Z = 0.55 (P = .585)] were similar between balanced crystalloids treatment and saline treatment among critical ill patients. Patients who received balanced crystalloids treatment or saline treatment needed the same length of ICU stay [WMD = 0.00; 95%CI, −0.09 to 0.10; Z = 0.09 (P = .932)] and hospital stay [WMD = 0.59; 95%CI, −0.33 to 1.51; Z = 1.26 (P = .209)]. Critical ill patients who received balanced crystalloids treatment or saline treatment had the same level of creatinine highest before discharge [WMD = 0.01; 95%CI, −0.02 to 0.04; Z = 0.76 (P = .446)] and needs for RRT [RR = 1.04; 95%CI, 0.75 to 1.43; Z = 0.21 (P = .830)]. Similar results were obtained in subgroups of trials stratified according to the age of patients (children or adults).Conclusions:When compared with saline, balanced crystalloids could not reduce the risk of MAKE30, 30-day mortality, ICU mortality and in-hospital mortality, could not reduce the length of ICU stay, length of hospital stay, the level of creatinine highest before discharge and the needs for RRT among critical ill children and adults. Therefore, it was still too early for balanced crystalloids to replace normal saline among critical ill patients.     

Understanding cardiopulmonary resuscitation decision making: perspectives of seriously ill hospitalized patients and family members

BACKGROUND: To improve communication and decision making related to cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), a greater understanding of the perspectives of hospitalized patients with advanced diseases and their family members are needed. METHODS: In five Canadian hospitals, we administered a face-to-face questionnaire to older inpatients with end-stage cancer and advanced medical diseases and, where possible, to one of their family members, regarding information needs, the deliberation process, and their preferred decisional role. FINDINGS: A total of 440 of 569 patients (78%) and 160 of 176 available caregivers (91%) agreed to participate. Most patients (61%) had thought about what treatment they wanted if their heart stopped, few patients (11.3%) could describe more than two components of CPR, and only 2.7% of patients thought that the success rate of CPR was < 10%. A minority of patients (34%) had discussed CPR with their physician; 37% did not want to discuss their preferences with their doctor. Patients who felt that end-of-life issues were relevant to them were 5.5 times more likely to want a discussion with the physician regarding resuscitation (odds ratio, 5.5; 95% confidence interval, 2.5 to 12.0). The preferred role in decision making was variable, but most patients (59.7%) and family members (81.6%) preferred some degree of shared decision making that included the family member. There were no significant differences between cancer and medical patients in their preferred decisional role. INTERPRETATION: Seriously ill hospitalized patients have poor knowledge about CPR, and variable preferences for deliberation and their role in the decision-making process regarding their treatment. Strategies that improve understanding of CPR and foster discussions that involve patients, family members, and physicians in the decision-making process may improve the quantity and quality of communication and decision making about CPR.