Effects of dexmedetomidine, propofol, sevoflurane and S-ketamine on the human metabolome A randomised trial using nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy

BACKGROUND Pharmacometabolomics uses large-scale data capturing methods to uncover drug-induced shifts in the metabolic profile. The specific effects of anaesthetics on the human metabolome are largely unknown. OBJECTIVE We aimed to discover whether exposure to routinely used anaesthetics have an acute effect on the human metabolic profile. DESIGN Randomised, open-label, controlled, parallel group, phase IV clinical drug trial. SETTING The study was conducted at Turku PET Centre, University of Turku, Finland, 2016 to 2017. PARTICIPANTS One hundred and sixty healthy male volunteers were recruited. The metabolomic data of 159 were evaluable. INTERVENTIONS Volunteers were randomised to receive a 1-h exposure to equipotent doses (EC50 for verbal command) of dexmedetomidine (1.5 ng ml(-1); n = 40), propofol (1.7 mu g ml(-1); n = 40), sevoflurane (0.9% end-tidal; n = 39), S-ketamine (0.75 mu g ml(-1); n = 20) or placebo (n = 20). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Metabolite subgroups of apolipoproteins and lipoproteins, cholesterol, glycerides and phospholipids, fatty acids, glycolysis, amino acids, ketone bodies, creatinine and albumin and the inflammatory marker GlycA, were analysed with nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy from arterial blood samples collected at baseline, after anaesthetic administration and 70 min post-anaesthesia. RESULTS All metabolite subgroups were affected. Statistically significant changes vs. placebo were observed in 11.0, 41.3, 0.65 and 3.9% of the 155 analytes in the dexmedetomidine, propofol, sevoflurane and S-ketamine groups, respectively. Dexmedetomidine increased glucose, decreased ketone bodies and affected lipoproteins and apolipoproteins. Propofol altered lipoproteins, fatty acids, glycerides and phospholipids and slightly increased inflammatory marker glycoprotein acetylation. Sevoflurane was relatively inert. S-ketamine increased glucose and lactate, whereasbranched chain amino acids and tyrosine decreased. CONCLUSION A 1-h exposure to moderate doses of routinely used anaesthetics led to significant and characteristic alterations in the metabolic profile. Dexmedetomidine-induced alterations mirror a2-adrenoceptor agonism. Propofol emulsion altered the lipid profile. The inertness of sevoflurane might prove useful in vulnerable patients. S-ketamine induced amino acid alterations might be linked to its suggested antidepressive properties.Peer reviewe

Effect of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor and angiotensin receptor blocker initiation on organ support-free days in patients hospitalized with COVID-19

IMPORTANCE Overactivation of the renin-angiotensin system (RAS) may contribute to poor clinical outcomes in patients with COVID-19. Objective To determine whether angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor or angiotensin receptor blocker (ARB) initiation improves outcomes in patients hospitalized for COVID-19. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS In an ongoing, adaptive platform randomized clinical trial, 721 critically ill and 58 non–critically ill hospitalized adults were randomized to receive an RAS inhibitor or control between March 16, 2021, and February 25, 2022, at 69 sites in 7 countries (final follow-up on June 1, 2022). INTERVENTIONS Patients were randomized to receive open-label initiation of an ACE inhibitor (n = 257), ARB (n = 248), ARB in combination with DMX-200 (a chemokine receptor-2 inhibitor; n = 10), or no RAS inhibitor (control; n = 264) for up to 10 days. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES The primary outcome was organ support–free days, a composite of hospital survival and days alive without cardiovascular or respiratory organ support through 21 days. The primary analysis was a bayesian cumulative logistic model. Odds ratios (ORs) greater than 1 represent improved outcomes. RESULTS On February 25, 2022, enrollment was discontinued due to safety concerns. Among 679 critically ill patients with available primary outcome data, the median age was 56 years and 239 participants (35.2%) were women. Median (IQR) organ support–free days among critically ill patients was 10 (–1 to 16) in the ACE inhibitor group (n = 231), 8 (–1 to 17) in the ARB group (n = 217), and 12 (0 to 17) in the control group (n = 231) (median adjusted odds ratios of 0.77 [95% bayesian credible interval, 0.58-1.06] for improvement for ACE inhibitor and 0.76 [95% credible interval, 0.56-1.05] for ARB compared with control). The posterior probabilities that ACE inhibitors and ARBs worsened organ support–free days compared with control were 94.9% and 95.4%, respectively. Hospital survival occurred in 166 of 231 critically ill participants (71.9%) in the ACE inhibitor group, 152 of 217 (70.0%) in the ARB group, and 182 of 231 (78.8%) in the control group (posterior probabilities that ACE inhibitor and ARB worsened hospital survival compared with control were 95.3% and 98.1%, respectively). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE In this trial, among critically ill adults with COVID-19, initiation of an ACE inhibitor or ARB did not improve, and likely worsened, clinical outcomes. TRIAL REGISTRATION ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT0273570

Dreaming and awareness during dexmedetomidine- and propofol-induced unresponsiveness

Background: Experiences during anaesthetic-induced unresponsiveness have previously been investigated by interviews after recovery. To explore whether experiences occur during drug administration, we interviewed participants during target-controlled infusion (TCI) of dexmedetomidine or propofol and after recovery. Methods: Healthy participants received dexmedetomidine (n = 23) or propofol (n = 24) in stepwise increments until loss of responsiveness (LOR1). During TCI we attempted to arouse them for interview (return of responsiveness, ROR1). After the interview, if unresponsiveness ensued with the same dose (LOR2), the procedure was repeated (ROR2). Finally, the concentration was increased 1.5-fold to achieve presumable loss of consciousness (LOC), infusion terminated, and the participants interviewed upon recovery (ROR3). An emotional sound stimulus was presented during LORs and LOC, and memory for stimuli was assessed with recognition task after recovery. Interview transcripts were content analysed. Results: Of participants receiving dexmedetomidine, 18/23 were arousable from LOR1 and LOR2. Of participants receiving propofol, 10/24 were arousable from LOR1 and two of four were arousable from LOR2. Of 93 interviews performed, 84% included experiences from periods of unresponsiveness (dexmedetomidine 90%, propofol 74%). Internally generated experiences (dreaming) were present in 86% of reports from unresponsive periods, while externally generated experiences (awareness) were rare and linked to brief arousals. No within drug differences in the prevalence or content of experiences during infusion vs after recovery were observed, but participants receiving dexmedetomidine reported dreaming and awareness more often. Participants receiving dexmedetomidine recognised the emotional sounds better than participants receiving propofol (42% vs 15%), but none reported references to sounds spontaneously. Conclusion: Anaesthetic-induced unresponsiveness does not induce unconsciousness or necessarily even disconnectedness.CC BY-NC-ND 4.0</p

DREAM: A Dream EEG and Mentation database

Dream studies using electroencephalographic (EEG) recordings are an integral paradigm in the investigation of neurocognitive processes of human sleep and consciousness. However, they are limited by the number of observations that can be collected per study, and substantial methodological and conceptual variability poses problems for the integration of results. To address these issues, we present the DREAM database—an expanding collection of standardized datasets on human sleep EEG combined with dream report data—with an initial release of 18 datasets, totaling 2297 data points. Each datum consists, at minimum, of sleep EEG (≥20 s, ≥100 Hz, ≥2 electrodes) up to the time of waking and a standardized dream report classification of the participant’s reported sleep experience. This database will provide access to a larger pool of data than any single research group can collect and increase the statistical power of studies focusing on the neural correlates of dreaming. As examples, we demonstrate analyses of dream reports and EEG at each sleep stage (N &gt; 1400 epochs). The database will also provide useful criteria for methodological choices in future laboratory research on dreaming