Prompt admission to the ICU : an instrument to improve mortality for deteriorating ward patients

Peer reviewe

Estimating the impact of tuberculosis anatomical classification on treatment outcomes: A patient and surveillance perspective analysis.

INTRODUCTION: Tuberculosis anatomical classification is inconsistent in the literature, which limits current tuberculosis knowledge and control. We aimed to evaluate whether tuberculosis classification impacts on treatment outcomes at patient and aggregate level. METHODS: We analyzed adults from São Paulo State, Brazil with newly diagnosed tuberculosis from 2010-2013. We used an extended clinical classification of tuberculosis, categorizing cases as pulmonary, pulmonary and extrapulmonary, extrapulmonary and miliary/disseminated. Our primary outcome was unsuccessful outcome of treatment. To investigate the reported treatment outcome at the aggregate level, we sampled 500 different "countries" from the dataset and compared the impact of pulmonary and extrapulmonary classifications on the reported treatment success. RESULTS: Of 62,178 patients, 49,999 (80.4%) were pulmonary, 9,026 (14.5%) extrapulmonary, 1,651 (2.7%) pulmonary-extrapulmonary and 1,502 (2.4%) miliary/disseminated. Pulmonary-extrapulmonary cases had similar unsuccessful outcome of treatment compared with pulmonary (adjusted-OR 1.00, 95%CI, 0.88-1.13, p = 0.941), while extrapulmonary were associated with better (adjusted-OR 0.65, 95%CI, 0.60-0.71, p<0.001) and miliary/disseminated with worse outcomes (adjusted-OR 1.51, 95%CI, 1.33-1.71, p<0.001). We found that 60 (12%) countries would report a difference ≥10% in treatment success depending on whether they reported all clinical forms together (current WHO recommendation) or pulmonary forms alone, overestimating the treatment success of pulmonary forms. CONCLUSIONS: The expanded anatomical classification of tuberculosis was strongly associated with treatment outcomes at the patient level. Remarkably, pulmonary with concomitant extrapulmonary forms had similar treatment outcomes compared with pulmonary forms after adjustment for potential confounders. At the aggregate level, reporting treatment success for all clinical forms together might hide differences in progress between pulmonary and extrapulmonary tuberculosis control

The impact of being homeless on the unsuccessful outcome of treatment of pulmonary TB in São Paulo State, Brazil.

BACKGROUND: Tuberculosis (TB) is a major public health problem requiring complex treatment, the success of which depends on biological, social, and institutional factors. São Paulo State (SPS), in Brazil, has a high TB burden. Because of high socioeconomic heterogeneity and chaotic urbanisation, homelessness might play an important role in the TB burden in SPS. Our aim was to determine the association between homelessness and outcome of treatment of pulmonary TB (PTB) in SPS. METHODS: A historical cohort from the routine SPS TB database for 2009-2013 was analysed. The study population was newly diagnosed adult patients with PTB. Homelessness was ascertained at notification or when treatment started. Our outcome was unsuccessful outcome of treatment. We used logistic regression to adjust for potential confounders and multiple imputation for missing data. RESULTS: We analysed 61,817 patients; 1726 (2.8 %, 95%CI 2.7-2.9 %) were homeless. Homeless patients were concentrated in bigger cities, were more frequently middle-aged males, had black/brown skin colour, and had received less education (P < 0.001, for all). Alcohol and drug use was three times more frequent in homeless patients (43.2 % vs 14.4 %, 30.2 % vs. 9.4 %, P < 0.001, respectively). HIV testing was less common among the homeless, of whom 17.3 % were HIV positive compared with 8.5 % among the not homeless population (P < 0.001). Microbiologic confirmation was more frequent among the homeless (91.6 % vs. 84.8 %, P < 0.001). Unsuccessful outcome of treatment was 57.3 % among the homeless and 17.5 % among the not homeless (OR = 6.32, 95%CI 5.73-6.97, P < 0.001), mainly due to loss to follow-up (39 %) and death (10.5 %). After full-adjustment for potential confounders, homelessness remained strongly associated with lower treatment success (aOR = 4.96, 95 % CI 4.27-5.76, P < 0.001). HIV status interacted with homelessness: among HIV-infected patients, the aOR was 2.45 (95%CI 1.90-3.16, Pinteraction < 0.001). The population attributable fraction for the joint effect of homelessness, alcohol and drug use was almost 20 %. CONCLUSIONS: Confirming our hypothesis, homelessness led to a marked reduction in the successful treatment of newly diagnosed pulmonary tuberculosis. Homelessness and associated conditions were important contributors to lack of treatment success in pulmonary tuberculosis in São Paulo. A multifaceted intervention must be implemented to target this vulnerable population

Effect of intraoperative HES 6% 130/0.4 on the need for blood transfusion after major oncologic surgery: a propensity-matched analysis

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the effect of the intraoperative use of hydroxyethyl starch on the need for blood products in the perioperative period of oncologic surgery. The secondary end-points included the need for other blood products, the clotting profile, the intensive care unit mortality and length of stay. METHODS: Retrospective observational analysis in a tertiary oncologic ICU in Brazil including 894 patients submitted to oncologic surgery for a two-year period from September 2007. Patients were grouped according to whether hydroxyethyl starch was used during surgery (hydroxyethyl starch and No-hydroxyethyl starch groups) and compared using a propensity score analysis. A total of 385 propensity-matched patients remained in the analysis (97 in the No-hydroxyethyl starch group and 288 in the hydroxyethyl starch group). RESULTS: A higher percentage of patients in the hydroxyethyl starch group required red blood cell transfusion during surgery (26% vs. 14%; p = 0.016) and in the first 24 hours after surgery (5% vs. 0%; p = 0.015) but not in the 24- to 48-hour period after the procedure. There was no difference regarding the transfusion of other blood products, intensive care unit mortality or length of stay. CONCLUSION: Hydroxyethyl starch use in the intraoperative period of major oncologic surgery is associated with an increase in red blood cell transfusions. There are no differences in the need for other blood products, intensive care unit length of stay or mortality

Invasive and non-invasive diagnostic approaches for microbiological diagnosis of hospital-acquired pneumonia

Background: Data on the methods used for microbiological diagnosis of hospital-acquired pneumonia (HAP) are mainly extrapolated from ventilator-associated pneumonia. HAP poses additional challenges for respiratory sampling, and the utility of sputum or distal sampling in HAP has not been comprehensively evaluated, particularly in HAP admitted to the ICU. Methods: We analyzed 200 patients with HAP from six ICUs in a teaching hospital in Barcelona, Spain. The respiratory sampling methods used were divided into non-invasive [sputum and endotracheal aspirate (EAT)] and invasive [fiberoptic-bronchoscopy aspirate (FBAS), and bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL)]. Results: A median of three diagnostic methods were applied [range 2-4]. At least one respiratory sampling method was applied in 93% of patients, and two or more were applied in 40%. Microbiological diagnosis was achieved in 99 (50%) patients, 69 (70%) by only one method (42% FBAS, 23% EAT, 15% sputum, 9% BAL, 7% blood culture, and 4% urinary antigen). Seventy-eight (39%) patients underwent a fiberoptic-bronchoscopy when not receiving mechanical ventilation. Higher rates of microbiological diagnosis were observed in the invasive group (56 vs. 39%, p = 0.018). Patients with microbiological diagnosis more frequently presented changes in their empirical antibiotic scheme, mainly de-escalation. Conclusions: A comprehensive approach might be undertaken for microbiological diagnosis in critically ill nonventilated HAP. Sputum sampling determined one third of microbiological diagnosis in HAP patients who were not subsequently intubated. Invasive methods were associated with higher rates of microbiological diagnosis

Increasing tuberculosis burden in Latin America: an alarming trend for global control efforts.

Editoria

Respiratory research networks in Europe and beyond: aims, achievements and aspirations for the 21st century

Healthcare-associated infection, such as intensive care unit (ICU)-related respiratory infections, remain the most frequently encountered morbidity of ICU admission, prolonging hospital stay and increasing mortality rates. The epidemiology of ICU-related respiratory infections, particularly nonventilated ICU-associated pneumonia and ventilator-associated tracheobronchitis, appears to be quite different among different countries. European countries have different prevalence, patterns and mechanism of resistance, as well as different treatments chosen by different attending physicians. The classical clinical research process in respiratory infections consists of the following loop: 1) identification of knowledge gaps; 2) systematic review and search for adequate answers; 3) generation of study hypotheses; 4) design of study protocols; 5) collection clinical data; 6) analysis and interpretation of the results; and 7) implementation of the results in clinical practic

Effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines against severe COVID-19 among patients with cancer in Catalonia, Spain

Patients with cancer were excluded from pivotal randomized clinical trials of COVID-19 vaccine products, and available observational evidence on vaccine effectiveness (VE) focused mostly on mild, and not severe COVID-19, which is the ultimate goal of vaccination for high-risk groups. Here, using primary care electronic health records from Catalonia, Spain (SIDIAP), we built two large cohorts of vaccinated and matched control cancer patients with a primary vaccination scheme (n = 184,744) and a booster (n = 108,534). Most patients received a mRNA-based product in primary (76.2%) and booster vaccination (99.9%). Patients had 51.8% (95% CI 40.3%−61.1%) and 58.4% (95% CI 29.3%−75.5%) protection against COVID-19 hospitalization and COVID-19 death respectively after full vaccination (two-doses) and 77.9% (95% CI 69.2%−84.2%) and 80.2% (95% CI 63.0%−89.4%) after booster. Compared to primary vaccination, the booster dose provided higher peak protection during follow-up. Calibration of VE estimates with negative outcomes, and sensitivity analyses with slight different population and COVID-19 outcomes definitions provided similar results. Our results confirm the role of primary and booster COVID-19 vaccination in preventing COVID-19 severe events in patients with cancer and highlight the need for the additional dose in this population.</p

Long-term survival and cause-specific mortality of patients newly diagnosed with tuberculosis in São Paulo state, Brazil, 2010–15: a population-based, longitudinal study.

BACKGROUND: Long-term survival and cause-specific mortality of patients who start tuberculosis treatment is rarely described. We aimed to assess the long-term survival of these patients and evaluate the association between vulnerable conditions (social, health behaviours, and comorbidities) and cause-specific mortality in a country with a high burden of tuberculosis. METHODS: In this population-based, longitudinal study in São Paulo state, Brazil, we described the 5-year survival of patients who were newly diagnosed with tuberculosis in 2010. We included patients with newly-diagnosed tuberculosis, aged 15 years or older, and notified to the São Paulo State Tuberculosis Program in 2010. We excluded patients whose diagnosis had changed during follow-up (ie, they did not have tuberculosis) and patients who had multidrug-resistant (MDR) tuberculosis. We selected our population with tuberculosis from the dedicated electronic system TBweb. Our primary objective was to estimate the excess mortality over 5 years and within the group who survived the first year, compared with the general São Paulo state population. We also estimated the association between social vulnerability (imprisonment and homelessness), health behaviours (alcohol and drug use), and comorbidities (diabetes and mental disorders) with all-cause and cause-specific mortality. We used the competing risk analysis framework, estimating cause-specific hazard ratios (HRs) adjusted for potential confounding factors. FINDINGS: In 2010, there were 19 252 notifications of tuberculosis cases. We excluded 550 cases as patients were younger than 15 years, 556 cases that were not tuberculosis, 2597 retreatments, and 48 cases of MDR tuberculosis, resulting in a final cohort of 15 501 patients with tuberculosis. Over a period of 5 years from tuberculosis diagnosis, 2660 (17%) of 15 501 patients died. Compared with the source population, matched by age, sex, and calendar year, the standardised mortality ratio was 6·47 (95% CI 6·22-6·73) over 5 years and 3·93 (3·71-4·17) among those who survived the first year. 1197 (45%) of 2660 deaths were due to infection. Homelessness and alcohol and drug use were associated with death from infection (adjusted cause-specific HR 1·60, 95% CI 1·39-1·85), cardiovascular (1·43, 1·06-1·95), and external or ill-defined causes of death (1·80, 1·37-2·36). Diabetes was associated with deaths from cardiovascular causes (1·70, 1·23-2·35). INTERPRETATION: Patients newly diagnosed with tuberculosis were at a higher risk of death than were the source population, even after tuberculosis treatment. Post-tuberculosis sequelae and vulnerability are associated with excess mortality and must be addressed to mitigate the tuberculosis burden worldwide. FUNDING: Wellcome Trust