Fin de vie programmée et don d'organes : enjeux individuels, communautaires et prudentiels

Organ transplantation saves lives of many persons who otherwise would die from end-stage organ disease. In the past decades the need for transplants has grown faster than the number of available organs. This increasing requirement for donated organs has led to a renewed interest in donation after circulatory determination of death (DCDD). In some countries including France, terminally ill patients who die of cardiac arrest after a planned withdrawal of life support may be considered as organ donors (controlled DCDD).Before 2005 French rules were not designed for such practices. With regard to patients in final stage of incurable diseases, the law number 2005-370 of April 22, 2005 authorizes the withholding or withdrawal of treatments when they appear "useless, disproportionate or having no other effect than solely the artificial preservation of life". Advocates of the controlled DCDD argue that the end-of-life care plan should incorporate the patient’s wishes concerning organ donation and the public interest of transplantation. Until 2014, most French medical academics regarded the perceived conflict of interest that would arise for clinicians treating potential donors as a major ethical question.As the French program started at the end of 2014 in a few pilot sites, we thus examine the practical, legal and ethical issues that arise in considering controlled DCDD, including determination of the donor’s overall benefit, debates relating to the diagnosis and time of death, and factors determining how life-sustaining treatment is to be withdrawn.La transplantation d’organe améliore durablement la qualité de vie de patients en défaillance organique terminale. Malheureusement le nombre de greffons disponibles est insuffisant pour traiter tous les patients inscrits en liste d’attente. En France, les organes greffés proviennent essentiellement de donneurs en mort encéphalique. En cas de maladie grave, incurable et rapidement mortelle, il est également possible dans certains pays (dont la France) d’arrêter les thérapeutiques qui maintiennent artificiellement un patient en vie et de prélever ses organes une fois le décès par arrêt circulatoire constaté.La loi n°2005-370 du 22 Avril 2005 (dite loi Léonetti) autorise l’arrêt des traitements lorsqu’ils apparaissent « inutiles, disproportionnés ou n’ayant d’autre effet que le seul maintien artificiel de la vie ». Pour certains, cette fin de vie médicalement planifiée devrait prendre en compte les souhaits du patient en matière de don d’organes et l’intérêt de la greffe pour la société. La position française était néanmoins jusqu’en 2014 de ne pas considérer le patient en fin de vie comme un donneur potentiel afin d’éviter toute confusion entre la décision d’arrêter les traitements curatifs et l’intention de prélever ses organes.Alors que ce type de prélèvement a débuté fin 2014 dans quelques sites pilotes français, nous avons examiné les aspects pratiques, juridiques et éthiques du prélèvement d’organe en situation de fin de vie médicalisée, en focalisant notre réflexion sur les droits du patient, la définition de la mort, la temporalité du processus de prélèvement, et les éléments qui déterminent les modalités d’arrêt des suppléances vitales

Non-equilibrium temperatures in steady-state systems with conserved energy

We study a class of non-equilibrium lattice models describing local redistributions of a globally conserved quantity, which is interpreted as an energy. A particular subclass can be solved exactly, allowing to define a statistical temperature T_{th} along the same lines as in the equilibrium microcanonical ensemble. We compute the response function and find that when the fluctuation-dissipation relation is linear, the slope T_{FD}^{-1} of this relation differs from the inverse temperature T_{th}^{-1}. We argue that T_{th} is physically more relevant than T_{FD}, since in the steady-state regime, it takes equal values in two subsystems of a large isolated system. Finally, a numerical renormalization group procedure suggests that all models within the class behave similarly at a coarse-grained level, leading to a new parameter which describes the deviation from equilibrium. Quantitative predictions concerning this parameter are obtained within a mean-field framework.Comment: 16 pages, 2 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.

Admission criteria and management of critical care patients in a pandemic context: position of the Ethics Commission of the French Intensive Care Society, update of April 2021.

Intensive care unit professionals have experience in critical care and its proportionality, collegial decision-making, withholding or withdrawal of treatment deemed futile, and communication with patients' relatives. These elements rely on ethical values from which we must not deviate in a pandemic situation. The recommendations made by the Ethics Commission of the French Intensive Care Society reflect an approach of responsibility and solidarity towards our citizens regarding the potential impact of a pandemic on critical care resources in France, with the fundamental requirement of respect for human dignity and equal access to health care for all

Epidemiology and outcome predictors in 450 patients with hanging-induced cardiac arrest: a retrospective study

BackgroundCardiac arrest is the most life-threatening complication of attempted suicide by hanging. However, data are scarce on its characteristics and outcome predictors.MethodsThis retrospective observational multicentre study in 31 hospitals included consecutive adults admitted after cardiac arrest induced by suicidal hanging. Factors associated with in-hospital mortality were identified by multivariate logistic regression with multiple imputations for missing data and adjusted to the temporal trends over the study period.ResultsOf 450 patients (350 men, median age, 43 [34–52] years), 305 (68%) had a psychiatric history, and 31 (6.9%) attempted hanging while hospitalized. The median time from unhanging to cardiopulmonary resuscitation was 0 [0–5] min, and the median time to return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC) was 20 [10–30] min. Seventy-nine (18%) patients survived to hospital discharge. Three variables were independently associated with higher in-hospital mortality: time from collapse or unhanging to ROSC>20 min (odds ratio [OR], 4.71; 95% confidence intervals [95%CIs], 2.02–10.96; p = 0.0004); glycaemia >1.4 g/L at admission (OR, 6.38; 95%CI, 2.60–15.66; p < 0.0001); and lactate >3.5 mmol/L at admission (OR, 6.08; 95%CI, 1.71–21.06; p = 0.005). A Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) score of >5 at admission was associated with lower in-hospital mortality (OR, 0.009; 95%CI, 0.02–0.37; p = 0.0009).ConclusionIn patients with hanging-induced cardiac arrest, time from collapse or unhanging to return of spontaneous circulation, glycaemia, arterial lactate, and coma depth at admission were independently associated with survival to hospital discharge. Knowledge of these risk factors may help guide treatment decisions in these patients at high risk of hospital mortality

Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation for Severe Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome associated with COVID-19: An Emulated Target Trial Analysis.

RATIONALE: Whether COVID patients may benefit from extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) compared with conventional invasive mechanical ventilation (IMV) remains unknown. OBJECTIVES: To estimate the effect of ECMO on 90-Day mortality vs IMV only Methods: Among 4,244 critically ill adult patients with COVID-19 included in a multicenter cohort study, we emulated a target trial comparing the treatment strategies of initiating ECMO vs. no ECMO within 7 days of IMV in patients with severe acute respiratory distress syndrome (PaO2/FiO2 <80 or PaCO2 ≥60 mmHg). We controlled for confounding using a multivariable Cox model based on predefined variables. MAIN RESULTS: 1,235 patients met the full eligibility criteria for the emulated trial, among whom 164 patients initiated ECMO. The ECMO strategy had a higher survival probability at Day-7 from the onset of eligibility criteria (87% vs 83%, risk difference: 4%, 95% CI 0;9%) which decreased during follow-up (survival at Day-90: 63% vs 65%, risk difference: -2%, 95% CI -10;5%). However, ECMO was associated with higher survival when performed in high-volume ECMO centers or in regions where a specific ECMO network organization was set up to handle high demand, and when initiated within the first 4 days of MV and in profoundly hypoxemic patients. CONCLUSIONS: In an emulated trial based on a nationwide COVID-19 cohort, we found differential survival over time of an ECMO compared with a no-ECMO strategy. However, ECMO was consistently associated with better outcomes when performed in high-volume centers and in regions with ECMO capacities specifically organized to handle high demand. This article is open access and distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial No Derivatives License 4.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)

Fin de vie programmée et don d'organes : enjeux individuels, communautaires et prudentiels

Organ transplantation saves lives of many persons who otherwise would die from end-stage organ disease. In the past decades the need for transplants has grown faster than the number of available organs. This increasing requirement for donated organs has led to a renewed interest in donation after circulatory determination of death (DCDD). In some countries including France, terminally ill patients who die of cardiac arrest after a planned withdrawal of life support may be considered as organ donors (controlled DCDD). Before 2005 French rules were not designed for such practices. With regard to patients in final stage of incurable diseases, the law number 2005-370 of April 22, 2005 authorizes the withholding or withdrawal of treatments when they appear "useless, disproportionate or having no other effect than solely the artificial preservation of life". Advocates of the controlled DCDD argue that the end-of-life care plan should incorporate the patient's wishes concerning organ donation and the public interest of transplantation. Until 2014, most French medical academics regarded the perceived conflict of interest that would arise for clinicians treating potential donors as a major ethical question. As the French program started at the end of 2014 in a few pilot sites, we thus examine the practical, legal and ethical issues that arise in considering controlled DCDD, including determination of the donor's overall benefit, debates relating to the diagnosis and time of death, and factors determining how life-sustaining treatment is to be withdrawn.La transplantation d'organe améliore durablement la qualité de vie de patients en défaillance organique terminale. Malheureusement le nombre de greffons disponibles est insuffisant pour traiter tous les patients inscrits en liste d'attente. En France, les organes greffés proviennent essentiellement de donneurs en mort encéphalique. En cas de maladie grave, incurable et rapidement mortelle, il est également possible dans certains pays (dont la France) d'arrêter les thérapeutiques qui maintiennent artificiellement un patient en vie et de prélever ses organes une fois le décès par arrêt circulatoire constaté. La loi n°2005-370 du 22 Avril 2005 (dite loi Léonetti) autorise l'arrêt des traitements lorsqu'ils apparaissent « inutiles, disproportionnés ou n'ayant d'autre effet que le seul maintien artificiel de la vie ». Pour certains, cette fin de vie médicalement planifiée devrait prendre en compte les souhaits du patient en matière de don d'organes et l'intérêt de la greffe pour la société. La position française était néanmoins jusqu'en 2014 de ne pas considérer le patient en fin de vie comme un donneur potentiel afin d'éviter toute confusion entre la décision d'arrêter les traitements curatifs et l'intention de prélever ses organes. Alors que ce type de prélèvement a débuté fin 2014 dans quelques sites pilotes français, nous avons examiné les aspects pratiques, juridiques et éthiques du prélèvement d'organe en situation de fin de vie médicalisée, en focalisant notre réflexion sur les droits du patient, la définition de la mort, la temporalité du processus de prélèvement, et les éléments qui déterminent les modalités d'arrêt des suppléances vitales

End-of-life decisions and organ donation : individual, communitarian and prudential aspects

La transplantation d'organe améliore durablement la qualité de vie de patients en défaillance organique terminale. Malheureusement le nombre de greffons disponibles est insuffisant pour traiter tous les patients inscrits en liste d'attente. En France, les organes greffés proviennent essentiellement de donneurs en mort encéphalique. En cas de maladie grave, incurable et rapidement mortelle, il est également possible dans certains pays (dont la France) d'arrêter les thérapeutiques qui maintiennent artificiellement un patient en vie et de prélever ses organes une fois le décès par arrêt circulatoire constaté. La loi n°2005-370 du 22 Avril 2005 (dite loi Léonetti) autorise l'arrêt des traitements lorsqu'ils apparaissent « inutiles, disproportionnés ou n'ayant d'autre effet que le seul maintien artificiel de la vie ». Pour certains, cette fin de vie médicalement planifiée devrait prendre en compte les souhaits du patient en matière de don d'organes et l'intérêt de la greffe pour la société. La position française était néanmoins jusqu'en 2014 de ne pas considérer le patient en fin de vie comme un donneur potentiel afin d'éviter toute confusion entre la décision d'arrêter les traitements curatifs et l'intention de prélever ses organes. Alors que ce type de prélèvement a débuté fin 2014 dans quelques sites pilotes français, nous avons examiné les aspects pratiques, juridiques et éthiques du prélèvement d'organe en situation de fin de vie médicalisée, en focalisant notre réflexion sur les droits du patient, la définition de la mort, la temporalité du processus de prélèvement, et les éléments qui déterminent les modalités d'arrêt des suppléances vitales.Organ transplantation saves lives of many persons who otherwise would die from end-stage organ disease. In the past decades the need for transplants has grown faster than the number of available organs. This increasing requirement for donated organs has led to a renewed interest in donation after circulatory determination of death (DCDD). In some countries including France, terminally ill patients who die of cardiac arrest after a planned withdrawal of life support may be considered as organ donors (controlled DCDD). Before 2005 French rules were not designed for such practices. With regard to patients in final stage of incurable diseases, the law number 2005-370 of April 22, 2005 authorizes the withholding or withdrawal of treatments when they appear "useless, disproportionate or having no other effect than solely the artificial preservation of life". Advocates of the controlled DCDD argue that the end-of-life care plan should incorporate the patient's wishes concerning organ donation and the public interest of transplantation. Until 2014, most French medical academics regarded the perceived conflict of interest that would arise for clinicians treating potential donors as a major ethical question. As the French program started at the end of 2014 in a few pilot sites, we thus examine the practical, legal and ethical issues that arise in considering controlled DCDD, including determination of the donor's overall benefit, debates relating to the diagnosis and time of death, and factors determining how life-sustaining treatment is to be withdrawn

Revue de pertinence sur la prescription des fluoroquinolones au service d'accueil des urgences du centre hospitalier de La Rochelle

POITIERS-BU Médecine pharmacie (861942103) / SudocSudocFranceF