Interfaces in non-invasive ventilation: one mask doesn’t fit all

Non-invasive ventilation (NIV) has become a standard of care in acute respiratory failure (ARF) caused by chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) exacerbations1or acute cardiogenic pulmonary edema, and in immunocompromised patients with ARF who are at high risk for infectious complications from endotracheal intubation

Frail or Not? That Is the Question (Editorial)

Editoria

Non-invasive oxygenation support in acutely hypoxemic COVID-19 patients admitted to the ICU: a multicenter observational retrospective study

Background: Non-invasive oxygenation strategies have a prominent role in the treatment of acute hypoxemic respiratory failure during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). While the efficacy of these therapies has been studied in hospitalized patients with COVID-19, the clinical outcomes associated with oxygen masks, high-flow oxygen therapy by nasal cannula and non-invasive mechanical ventilation in critically ill intensive care unit (ICU) patients remain unclear. Methods: In this retrospective study, we used the best of nine covariate balancing algorithms on all baseline covariates in critically ill COVID-19 patients supported with > 10 L of supplemental oxygen at one of the 26 participating ICUs in Catalonia, Spain, between March 14 and April 15, 2020. Results: Of the 1093 non-invasively oxygenated patients at ICU admission treated with one of the three stand-alone non-invasive oxygenation strategies, 897 (82%) required endotracheal intubation and 310 (28%) died during the ICU stay. High-flow oxygen therapy by nasal cannula (n = 439) and non-invasive mechanical ventilation (n = 101) were associated with a lower rate of endotracheal intubation (70% and 88%, respectively) than oxygen masks (n = 553 and 91% intubated), p < 0.001. Compared to oxygen masks, high-flow oxygen therapy by nasal cannula was associated with lower ICU mortality (hazard ratio 0.75 [95% CI 0.58-0.98), and the hazard ratio for ICU mortality was 1.21 [95% CI 0.80-1.83] for non-invasive mechanical ventilation. Conclusion: In critically ill COVID-19 ICU patients and, in the absence of conclusive data, high-flow oxygen therapy by nasal cannula may be the approach of choice as the primary non-invasive oxygenation support strategy

Disfunción diafragmática: una realidad en el paciente ventilado mecánicamente

La afectación muscular del paciente crítico está presente en la mayoría de pacientes que ingresan en el Servicio de Medicina Intensiva (SMI). La alteración, en particular, del músculo diafragmático, inicialmente englobada en esta categoría, se ha diferenciado en los últimos años y se ha demostrado la existencia de una disfunción muscular propia de los pacientes sometidos a ventilación mecánica. En este subgrupo de pacientes, encontramos una disfunción muscular que aparece de manera precoz después del inicio de la ventilación mecánica y que se relaciona, principalmente, con el uso de modalidades control, la presencia de sepsis y/o de fracaso multiorgánico. Aunque se desconoce la etiología concreta que desencadena el proceso, el músculo presenta procesos de estrés oxidativo y alteración mitocondrial, que provocan un desequilibrio en la síntesis proteica, con el resultado de atrofia y alteración de la contractilidad y, como consecuencia, una menor funcionalidad. No fue, de hecho, hasta 2004 cuando Vassilakopoulos et al describieron el término “Disfunción diafragmática asociada a ventilación mecánica” que junto a la lesión por sobre distensión pulmonar y por barotrauma, representan un reto en el día a día de los pacientes ventilados. La disfunción diafragmática tiene influencia en el pronóstico, retardando la extubación, aumentando la estancia hospitalaria y afectando la calidad de vida de estos pacientes en los años siguientes al alta hospitalaria. La ecografía, como técnica no invasiva y accesible en la mayoría de Unidades, podría ser de utilidad en el diagnóstico precoz para iniciar, de forma avanzada, la rehabilitación e influir positivamente en el pronóstico de estos enfermos.Muscle involvement is found in most critical patients admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU). Diaphragmatic muscle alteration, initially included in this category, has been differentiated in recent years, and a specific type of muscular dysfunction has been shown to occur in patients undergoing mechanical ventilation. We found this muscle dysfunction to appear in this subgroup of patients shortly after the start of mechanical ventilation, observing it to be mainly associated with certain control modes, and also with sepsis and/or multi-organ failure. Although the specific etiology of process is unknown, the muscle presents oxidative stress and mitochondrial changes. These cause changes in protein turnover, resulting in atrophy and impaired contractility, and leading to impaired functionality. The term 'ventilator-induced diaphragm dysfunction' was first coined by Vassilakopoulos et al. in 2004, and this phenomenon, along with injury cause by over-distention of the lung and barotrauma, represents a challenge in the daily life of ventilated patients. Diaphragmatic dysfunction affects prognosis by delaying extubation, prolonging hospital stay, and impairing the quality of life of these patients in the years following hospital discharge. Ultrasound, a non-invasive technique that is readily available in most ICUs, could be used to diagnose this condition promptly, thus preventing delays in starting rehabilitation and positively influencing prognosis in these patients

Disfunción diafragmática: una realidad en el paciente ventilado mecánicamente

La afectación muscular del paciente crítico está presente en la mayoría de pacientes que ingresan en el Servicio de Medicina Intensiva (SMI). La alteración, en particular, del músculo diafragmático, inicialmente englobada en esta categoría, se ha diferenciado en los últimos años y se ha demostrado la existencia de una disfunción muscular propia de los pacientes sometidos a ventilación mecánica. En este subgrupo de pacientes, encontramos una disfunción muscular que aparece de manera precoz después del inicio de la ventilación mecánica y que se relaciona, principalmente, con el uso de modalidades control, la presencia de sepsis y/o de fracaso multiorgánico. Aunque se desconoce la etiología concreta que desencadena el proceso, el músculo presenta procesos de estrés oxidativo y alteración mitocondrial, que provocan un desequilibrio en la síntesis proteica, con el resultado de atrofia y alteración de la contractilidad y, como consecuencia, una menor funcionalidad. No fue, de hecho, hasta 2004 cuando Vassilakopoulos et al describieron el término “Disfunción diafragmática asociada a ventilación mecánica” que junto a la lesión por sobre distensión pulmonar y por barotrauma, representan un reto en el día a día de los pacientes ventilados. La disfunción diafragmática tiene influencia en el pronóstico, retardando la extubación, aumentando la estancia hospitalaria y afectando la calidad de vida de estos pacientes en los años siguientes al alta hospitalaria. La ecografía, como técnica no invasiva y accesible en la mayoría de Unidades, podría ser de utilidad en el diagnóstico precoz para iniciar, de forma avanzada, la rehabilitación e influir positivamente en el pronóstico de estos enfermos.Muscle involvement is found in most critical patients admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU). Diaphragmatic muscle alteration, initially included in this category, has been differentiated in recent years, and a specific type of muscular dysfunction has been shown to occur in patients undergoing mechanical ventilation. We found this muscle dysfunction to appear in this subgroup of patients shortly after the start of mechanical ventilation, observing it to be mainly associated with certain control modes, and also with sepsis and/or multi-organ failure. Although the specific etiology of process is unknown, the muscle presents oxidative stress and mitochondrial changes. These cause changes in protein turnover, resulting in atrophy and impaired contractility, and leading to impaired functionality. The term 'ventilator-induced diaphragm dysfunction' was first coined by Vassilakopoulos et al. in 2004, and this phenomenon, along with injury cause by over-distention of the lung and barotrauma, represents a challenge in the daily life of ventilated patients. Diaphragmatic dysfunction affects prognosis by delaying extubation, prolonging hospital stay, and impairing the quality of life of these patients in the years following hospital discharge. Ultrasound, a non-invasive technique that is readily available in most ICUs, could be used to diagnose this condition promptly, thus preventing delays in starting rehabilitation and positively influencing prognosis in these patients

Early tracheostomy for managing ICU capacity during the COVID-19 outbreak: A propensity-matched cohort study

Background: During the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, shortages of ventilators and ICU beds overwhelmed health care systems. Whether early tracheostomy reduces the duration of mechanical ventilation and ICU stay is controversial. Research question: Can failure-free day outcomes focused on ICU resources help to decide the optimal timing of tracheostomy in overburdened health care systems during viral epidemics? Study design and methods: This retrospective cohort study included consecutive patients with COVID-19 pneumonia who had undergone tracheostomy in 15 Spanish ICUs during the surge, when ICU occupancy modified clinician criteria to perform tracheostomy in Patients with COVID-19. We compared ventilator-free days at 28 and 60 days and ICU- and hospital bed-free days at 28 and 60 days in propensity score-matched cohorts who underwent tracheostomy at different timings (≤ 7 days, 8-10 days, and 11-14 days after intubation). Results: Of 1,939 patients admitted with COVID-19 pneumonia, 682 (35.2%) underwent tracheostomy, 382 (56%) within 14 days. Earlier tracheostomy was associated with more ventilator-free days at 28 days (≤ 7 days vs > 7 days [116 patients included in the analysis]: median, 9 days [interquartile range (IQR), 0-15 days] vs 3 days [IQR, 0-7 days]; difference between groups, 4.5 days; 95% CI, 2.3-6.7 days; 8-10 days vs > 10 days [222 patients analyzed]: 6 days [IQR, 0-10 days] vs 0 days [IQR, 0-6 days]; difference, 3.1 days; 95% CI, 1.7-4.5 days; 11-14 days vs > 14 days [318 patients analyzed]: 4 days [IQR, 0-9 days] vs 0 days [IQR, 0-2 days]; difference, 3 days; 95% CI, 2.1-3.9 days). Except hospital bed-free days at 28 days, all other end points were better with early tracheostomy. Interpretation: Optimal timing of tracheostomy may improve patient outcomes and may alleviate ICU capacity strain during the COVID-19 pandemic without increasing mortality. Tracheostomy within the first work on a ventilator in particular may improve ICU availability

European Network for ICU-Related Respiratory Infections (ENIRRIs): a multinational, prospective, cohort study of nosocomial LRTI

Purpose: Lower respiratory tract infections (LRTI) are the most frequent infectious complication in patients admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU). We aim to report the clinical characteristics of ICU-admitted patients due to nosocomial LRTI and to describe their microbiology and clinical outcomes. Methods: A prospective observational study was conducted in 13 countries over two continents from 9th May 2016 until 16th August 2019. Characteristics and outcomes of ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP), ventilator-associated tracheobronchitis (VAT), ICU hospital-acquired pneumonia (ICU-HAP), HAP that required invasive ventilation (VHAP), and HAP in patients transferred to the ICU without invasive mechanical ventilation were collected. The clinical diagnosis and treatments were per clinical practice and not per protocol. Descriptive statistics were used to compare the study groups. Results: 1060 patients with LRTI (72.5% male sex, median age 64 [50-74] years) were included in the study; 160 (15.1%) developed VAT, 556 (52.5%) VAP, 98 (9.2%) ICU-HAP, 152 (14.3%) HAP, and 94 (8.9%) VHAP. Patients with VHAP had higher serum procalcitonin (PCT) and Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) scores. Patients with VAP or VHAP developed acute kidney injury, acute respiratory distress syndrome, multiple organ failure, or septic shock more often. One thousand eight patients had microbiological samples, and 711 (70.5%) had etiological microbiology identified. The most common microorganisms were Pseudomonas aeruginosa (18.4%) and Klebsiella spp (14.4%). In 382 patients (36%), the causative pathogen shows some antimicrobial resistance pattern. ICU, hospital and 28-day mortality were 30.8%, 37.5% and 27.5%, respectively. Patients with VHAP had the highest ICU, in-hospital and 28-day mortality rates. Conclusion: VHAP patients presented the highest mortality among those admitted to the ICU. Multidrug-resistant pathogens frequently cause nosocomial LRTI in this multinational cohort study

Successfully non-surgical management of flail chest as first manifestation of multiple myeloma: a case report

Background: Multiple myeloma is a malignant neoplasm of the bone marrow characterized by neoplastic proliferation of monoclonal plasma cells with a high relationship with destructive bone disease. We present a case of a patient diagnosed with multiple myeloma and sternal fracture in association with multiple bilateral rib fractures and thoracic kyphosis, who developed a severe acute respiratory failure, thus complicating the initial presentation of multiple myeloma. We discuss the therapeutic implications of this uncommon presentation. Case summary: A 56-year-old man presented to Hematological Department after he had been experiencing worsening back pain over the last five months, with easy fatigability and progressive weight loss. He had no history of previous trauma. The chemical blood tests were compatible with a diagnosis of multiple myeloma. A radiographic bone survey of all major bones revealed, in addition to multiple bilateral rib fractures, a sternal fracture and compression fracture at T9, T10, T11 and L1 vertebrae. Subcutaneous fat biopsy was positive for amyloid. We started treatment with bortezomib and dexamethasone. After 24 h of treatment, he presented dyspnea secondary to flail chest. He required urgent intubation and ventilatory support being transferred to intensive care unit for further management. The patient remained connected to mechanical ventilation (positive pressure) as treatment which stabilized the thorax. A second cycle of bortezomib plus dexamethasone was started and analgesia was optimized. The condition of the patient improved, as evidenced by callus formation on successive computed tomography scans. The patient was taken off the ventilator one month later, and he was extubated successfully, being able to breathe unaided without paradoxical motion. Conclusion: This case highlights the importance of combination between bortezomib and dexamethasone to induce remission of multiple myeloma and the initiation of positive airway pressure with mechanical ventilation to stabilize chest wall to solve the respiratory failure. This combined approach allowed to obtain a quick and complete resolution of the clinical situation

A statistical study of ship domains

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