Sodium and water perturbations in patients who had an acute stroke: clinical relevance and management strategies for the neurologist.

Sodium and water perturbations, manifesting as hyponatraemia and hypernatraemia, are common in patients who had an acute stroke, and are associated with worse outcomes and increased mortality. Other non-stroke-related causes of sodium and water perturbations in these patients include underlying comorbidities and concomitant medications. Additionally, hospitalised patients who had an acute stroke may receive excessive intravenous hypotonic solutions, have poor fluid intake due to impaired neurocognition and consciousness, may develop sepsis or are administered drugs (eg, mannitol); factors that can further alter serum sodium levels. Sodium and water perturbations can also be exacerbated by the development of endocrine consequences after an acute stroke, including secondary adrenal insufficiency, syndrome of inappropriate antidiuretic hormone secretion and diabetes insipidus. Recently, COVID-19 infection has been reported to increase the risk of development of sodium and water perturbations that may further worsen the outcomes of patients who had an acute stroke. Because there are currently no accepted consensus guidelines on the management of sodium and water perturbations in patients who had an acute stroke, we conducted a systematic review of the literature published in English and in peer-reviewed journals between January 2000 and December 2020, according to PRISMA guidelines, to assess on the current knowledge and clinical practices of this condition. In this review, we discuss the signs and symptoms of hyponatraemia and hypernatraemia, the pathogenesis of hyponatraemia and hypernatraemia, their clinical relevance, and we provide our recommendations for effective treatment strategies for the neurologist in the management of sodium and water perturbations in commonly encountered aetiologies of patients who had an acute stroke.

MANAGEMENT OF ENDOCRINE DISEASE: Dysnatraemia in COVID-19: prevalence, prognostic impact, pathophysiology, and management.

This review examines the prevalence, aetiology, pathophysiology, prognostic value, and investigation of dysnatraemia in hospitalised COVID-19 patients, taking into account all relevant studies published in PubMed and Cochrane Library studies until March 2021. Hyponatraemia is commonly observed in patients with bacterial pneumonia and is an independent predictor for excess mortality and morbidity. However, it remains unknown whether this association applies to coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19). Several studies reported a 20-35% prevalence for hyponatraemia and 2-5% for hypernatraemia in patients admitted with COVID-19. In addition, hyponatraemia on admission was a risk factor for progression to severe disease, being associated with an increased likelihood for the need for invasive mechanical ventilation, with an odds ratio (OR) of 1.83-3.30. Hyponatraemia seems to be an independent risk factor for mortality, with an OR of 1.40-1.50 compared to normonatraemia, while hypernatraemia is related to even worse outcomes than hyponatraemia. Furthermore, preliminary data show an inverse association between serum sodium and interleukin-6 levels, suggesting that hyponatraemia might be used as a surrogate marker for the risk of a cytokine storm and the need for treatment with interleukin antagonists. In conclusion, dysnatraemia is common and carries a poor prognosis in COVID-19 patients, indicating that it may play a future role in risk stratification and individualising therapy.

Extra-pulmonary complications of 45 critically ill patients with COVID-19 in Yichang, Hubei province, China: A single-centered, retrospective, observation study.

ABSTRACT: Mortality of critically ill patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) was high. Aims to examine whether time from symptoms onset to intensive care unit (ICU) admission affects incidence of extra-pulmonary complications and prognosis in order to provide a new insight for reducing the mortality. A single-centered, retrospective, observational study investigated 45 critically ill patients with COVID-19 hospitalized in ICU of The Third People's Hospital of Yichang from January 17 to March 29, 2020. Patients were divided into 2 groups according to time from symptoms onset to ICU admission (>7 and ≤7 days) and into 2 groups according to prognosis (survivors and non-survivors). Epidemiological, clinical, laboratory, radiological characteristics and treatment data were studied. Compared with patients who admitted to the ICU since symptoms onset ≤7 days (55.6%), patients who admitted to the ICU since symptoms onset >7 days (44.4%) were more likely to have extra-pulmonary complications (19 [95.0%] vs 16 [64.0%], P = .034), including acute kidney injury, cardiac injury, acute heart failure, liver dysfunction, gastrointestinal hemorrhage, hyperamylasemia, and hypernatremia. The incidence rates of acute respiratory distress syndrome, pneumothorax, and hospital-acquired pneumonia had no difference between the 2 groups. Except activated partial thromboplastin and Na+ concentration, the laboratory findings were worse in group of time from symptoms onset to ICU admission >7 days. There was no difference in mortality between the 2 groups. Of the 45 cases in the ICU, 19 (42.2%) were non-survivors, and 16 (35.6%) were with hospital-acquired pneumonia. Among these non-survivors, hospital-acquired pneumonia was up to 12 (63.2%) besides higher incidence of extra-pulmonary complications. However, hospital-acquired pneumonia occurred in only 4 (15.4%) survivors. Critically ill patients with COVID-19 who admitted to ICU at once might get benefit from intensive care via lower rate of extra-pulmonary complications.

Dysnatremia is a Predictor for Morbidity and Mortality in Hospitalized Patients with COVID-19.

CONTEXT: Dysnatremia is an independent predictor of mortality in patients with bacterial pneumonia. There is paucity of data about the incidence and prognostic impact of abnormal sodium concentration in patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). OBJECTIVE: This work aimed to examine the association of serum sodium during hospitalization with key clinical outcomes, including mortality, need for advanced respiratory support and acute kidney injury (AKI), and to explore the role of serum sodium as a marker of inflammatory response in COVID-19. METHODS: This retrospective longitudinal cohort study, including all adult patients who presented with COVID-19 to 2 hospitals in London over an 8-week period, evaluated the association of dysnatremia (serum sodium < 135 or > 145 mmol/L, hyponatremia, and hypernatremia, respectively) at several time points with inpatient mortality, need for advanced ventilatory support, and AKI. RESULTS: The study included 488 patients (median age, 68 years). At presentation, 24.6% of patients were hyponatremic, mainly due to hypovolemia, and 5.3% hypernatremic. Hypernatremia 2 days after admission and exposure to hypernatremia at any time point during hospitalization were associated with a 2.34-fold (95% CI, 1.08-5.05; P = .0014) and 3.05-fold (95% CI, 1.69-5.49; P < .0001) increased risk of death, respectively, compared to normonatremia. Hyponatremia at admission was linked with a 2.18-fold increase in the likelihood of needing ventilatory support (95% CI, 1.34-3.45, P = .0011). Hyponatremia was not a risk factor for in-hospital mortality, except for the subgroup of patients with hypovolemic hyponatremia. Sodium values were not associated with the risk for AKI and length of hospital stay. CONCLUSION: Abnormal sodium levels during hospitalization are risk factors for poor prognosis, with hypernatremia and hyponatremia being associated with a greater risk of death and respiratory failure, respectively. Serum sodium values could be used for risk stratification in patients with COVID-19.

Safety and tolerance of enteral nutrition in COVID-19 critically ill patients, a retrospective study.

BACKGROUND: There is a lack of evidence about the tolerance of enteral nutrition (EN) in COVID-19 critically ill patients. However, several gastrointestinal manifestations related to COVID-19 have been described. The aims of this study were to analyze the incidence of gastrointestinal intolerance (GI) associated to EN (diarrhea, vomiting, gastroparesis and constipation) and to describe energy/protein provision along with biochemical alterations during the first week of EN. METHODS: A retrospective cohort of COVID-19 critically ill patients under mechanical ventilation. We reported daily enteral nutrition infusion and gastrointestinal manifestations within the first week of intubation and enteral nutrition initiation. RESULTS: Fifty-two patients were included; 40.3% were overweight and 46.2% were obese. During the first 7 days of EN, manifestations of GI intolerance such as vomiting, diarrhea and gastroparesis were present in 18 patients (32.4%). Hypernatremia (39%) was the most frequent electrolyte abnormality. Only Acute Kidney Injury (AKI) diagnosis was associated with a higher energy deficit on day 7. No associations between drug prescription and GI intolerance were observed. On day 4, 94.5% of patients were receiving more than 80% of energy requirements and 94.2% of protein requirements. Accumulated energy and protein deficits at day 3 were 2171.2 ± 945 kcal and 114.9 ± 49.2 g, respectively; and 2586.4 ± 1151 kcal, 133.3 ± 60.4 g at day 7. CONCLUSION: Enteral nutrition is feasible and well-tolerated in COVID-19 patients with mechanical ventilation within the first week of enteral nutrition initiation. More studies are needed to elucidate the impact of nutritional therapy on infection course and outcomes.

Management of hyponatraemia and hypernatraemia during the Covid-19 pandemic: a consensus statement of the Spanish Society for Endocrinology (Acqua Neuroendocrinology Group).

SARS-COV2 infection has swiftly become a pandemic disease of historic relevance and widely variable outcomes. This variable prognosis is related both to uneven damage, among others, to lungs, heart and kidneys, and to a multisystemic inflammatory reaction. All these factors are known to disrupt water balance and potentially induce hyponatraemia or hypernatraemia. Water balance disorders are known mortality and morbidity risk factors in several clinical scenarios and their proper management, though often complex and hazardous, can reduce mortality and length of hospitalization. Clinical uncertainty over COVID-19 outcome, the variety of organs involved in both the infection and water balance and difficulties in clinical examination due to risk of contagion might obstruct proper management of dysnatremic disorders. Thus, the Acqua Neuroendocrinology Group of the Spanish Society for Endocrinology (SEEN) has endeavoured to provide evidence and expert based recommendations on the management of hyponatraemia and hypernatraemia in COVID-19 patients.