Effect of Intravenous Vitamin C, Thiamine, and Hydrocortisone (The Metabolic Resuscitation Protocol) on Early Weaning from Vasopressors in Patients with Septic Shock. A Descriptive Case Series Study.

OBJECTIVES:  The aim of this study was to assess the efficacy of intravenous vitamin C, hydrocortisone, and thiamine in early weaning (within 48 hours) from vasopressor support in patients with septic shock. We also aimed to assess mortality and intensive care unit (ICU) stay. STUDY DESIGN:  We conducted a descriptive case series study of 50 patients with septic shock who were admitted in the ICU of the Combined Military Hospital Rawalpindi in Pakistan from August 2017 until April 2018. MATERIALS AND METHODS:  The study included men and women (16 to 80 years of age) who were admitted to the ICU with septic shock. Data were analysed using the IBM Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS), version 18.0 (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY, USA). Inferential analysis was done with the help of simple and multivariate binary logistic regression that generated unadjusted and adjusted odds ratios (OR), respectively. RESULTS:  Of the 50 patients, 56% (N = 28) were male with a mean age of the respondents being 46.7 ± 18.4. Eighty-four percent were successfully weaned off vasopressors within 48 hours. Median days in the ICU were reported as 8.3 (interquartile range (IQR) = 5). Primary bacteremia (34%) was the most reported cause of ICU admission. The most common vasopressor was norepinephrine and its mean dose was 21.6 ± 10.7 microgram/min. The ICU mortality was observed at 52% (N = 26). Unadjusted OR showed a dose of norepinephrine, Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) score, plasma procalcitonin, and plasma lactate to be significant predictors (p-value < 0.05), while the adjusted odds ratio (AOR) showed only a dose of norepinephrine to be a statistically significant predictor (AOR = 0.804, 95% CI = 0.674 - 0.960; p-value = 0.016). CONCLUSION:  The administration of intravenous vitamin C, hydrocortisone, and thiamine to patients with septic shock was successful in early weaning from vasopressors. There was also a reduction in procalcitonin and lactate levels, as well as the SOFA score. Further trials are needed to determine whether the metabolic resuscitation protocol can become part of the treatment for septic shock.

Hyperchloremia in Intensive Care Unit Mortality: An Underestimated Fact.

Objective The goal of the study was to determine the percentage of hyperchloremia in patients who died in medical intensive care unit (ICU) and thus emphasizing the need of avoiding chloride-rich solutions due to their deleterious effects. Study design We conducted a retrospective study of data from 206 patients who expired in medical ICU in one year from January 2017 to December 2017 in the department of critical care medicine at Shifa International Hospital, Islamabad. Material and methods The study included 206 patients: 93 (43.1%) men and 123 (56.9%) women, over the age of 18 years who expired in medical ICU in one year from January 2017 to December 2017. Patients included for the study were all those who expired with any diagnosis but those who remained admitted in ICU for at least 72 hours and received intravenous fluids. The serum chloride levels of the patients at the time of admission and at 72 hours of stay in ICU were collected. The patients who were having serum chloride levels of 107 milliequivalent per deciliter (meq/dl) or more were labeled as having hyperchloremia. The data were analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics for Windows, Version 23.0 (IBM Crop., Armonk, NY, USA). The mean and standard deviations were calculated for continuous variables while frequency and percentages were calculated for qualitative variables. Results Among 206 patients who expired in our ICU, 109 (50.5%) patients had hyperchloremia at 72 hours of admission in ICU while 107 (49.5%) patients did not had hyperchloremia. Hyperchloremia was more frequent in patients with sepsis or septic shock. Conclusion Higher percentage (50.5%) of hyperchloremia at 72 hours of admission among patients (who expired in our medical ICU) indicates excessive use of chloride-rich intravenous fluids. This finding may have significant impact on mortality along with other contributing factors that lead to death of the patients. Keeping in view the findings of the study, chloride-rich solutions should be used carefully to counter the effects of hyperchloremia in patients requiring large volume fluid resuscitation in ICU. Fluids with lower content of chloride such as lactated ringer may be equally good in large volume fluid resuscitation with advantage of avoiding hyperchloremia.

Role of Anti-ganglioside Antibodies in the Diagnosis of Guillain-Barré Syndrome as an Alternate Investigation.

Objective The goal of the study was to see if anti-ganglioside antibodies have a role in the diagnosis of Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS). Study design Between May 2016 to October 2017, we conducted a prospective pilot study of 15 patients with a clinical diagnosis of GBS with equivocal cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) analysis and/or nerve conduction studies (NCS) . Materials and methods All adult patients (age >18 years) whose clinical diagnosis was GBS but diagnostic tests (either NCS or CSF analysis or both) were not suggestive of GBS were included in the study and were tested for anti-gangliosides antibodies. Data was entered in SPSS, version 21.0 (IBM, Armonk, New York) and analyzed. Results Of the 15 patients fulfilling the inclusion criteria, 60% had a normal CSF analysis while 40% had normal NCS. The percentages of different GBS variants observed in sampled patients were acute inflammatory demyelinating polyradiculopathy (AIDP) 40%, acute motor axonal neuropathy (AMAN) 40%, acute motor and sensory axonal neuropathy (AMSAN) 13.3%, and Miller Fisher syndrome 6.7%. However, the anti-ganglioside antibodies were negative in all patients. Conclusion Anti-gangliosides antibodies cannot be used as an alternative diagnostic investigation in GBS patients as our study failed to show positive results in different GBS variants.

Determining the Incidence of Acute Kidney Injury Using the RIFLE Criteria in the Medical Intensive Care Unit in a Tertiary Care Hospital Setting in Pakistan.

Background Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a frequently encountered clinical condition in hospitalized patients, particularly those admitted to intensive care units (ICU). AKI has its systemic sequelae and contributes to the morbidity of underlying diseases. Methods This descriptive case series aimed to determine the frequency of acute kidney injury in critically ill patients admitted to the ICU at Shifa International Hospital, Islamabad, according to the RIFLE (risk, injury, failure, loss, and end-stage) criteria. A total of 124 patients were enrolled in this study. RIFLE criteria were applied to determine the frequency of AKI in critically ill patients. Results The frequency of AKI was 68.55% and mortality was 18.55%. The severity of AKI was found to be significantly associated with mortality (p < 0.001). Conclusion AKI is very common in critically ill patients and contributes to the mortality and morbidity of the patients. Early identification of AKI can reduce mortality in critically ill patients.

Early Versus Late Tracheostomy After Decompressive Craniectomy.

Objective The goal of this study was to determine the efficacy of early tracheostomy (i.e., ≤ 10 days of intubation) compared with a late tracheostomy (> 10 days of intubation) with regards to timing, frequency of ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP), mortality rate, and hospital stay in patients who received decompressive craniectomy. Study design We conducted a retrospective study of data from 168 patients who underwent decompression in the department of critical care medicine at Shifa International Hospital, Islamabad, Pakistan, from January 2017 to December 2017. Materials and methods The study included men and women over the age of 18 years who had undergone tracheostomy following decompressive craniectomy in the intensive care unit as a result of stroke, traumatic brain injury, or acute severe injury. Data were analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics for Windows, Version 23.0 (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY, US). We also applied the Chi-square test, and p ≤ 0.05 was considered significant. Results Of 168 patient records reviewed, tracheostomy was performed in 48 patients (21 men, 27 women). In the 48 tracheostomy patients, 15 (31%) were early tracheostomies and 33 (69%) were late tracheostomies. The mean age of patients was 44 ± 11 years. Twenty-eight patients (58.3%) were in the younger age group (age 18 to 45 years) and 20 patients (41.7%) were in the older age group (age > 45 years). Patients who received an early tracheostomy spent significantly less time on a ventilator (≤ 12 days) than those patients receiving a late tracheostomy (> 12 days, p = 0.004). The early tracheostomy group also had a lower incidence rate of VAP than patients with a late tracheostomy (𝑥2 = 7.855, p = 0.005). Patients who received an early tracheostomy had lower mortality rates than those who received late tracheostomies (𝑥2 = 6.158, p = 0.013). Finally, the length of hospital stay was ≤ 15 days for patients who received early tracheostomies; most patients who received a late tracheostomy had a hospital stay of > 15 days (𝑥2 =11.965, p = 0.001). Conclusions Performing a tracheostomy within 10 days of intubation following decompressive craniectomy significantly reduced ventilator time, mortality, the incidence of VAP, and length of hospital stay. Given the potential benefits of early tracheostomy in critical care patients following decompressive craniectomy, physicians should consider early tracheostomy in appropriate cases.

Comparing Ultrasound-based Diaphragmatic Excursion with Rapid Shallow Breathing Index as a Weaning Predictor.

Background A challenging task in the intensive care unit is weaning intubated patients from mechanical ventilation. The most commonly used weaning parameter, the rapid shallow breathing index (RSBI), gives thorough guidance on extubation timing with spontaneous breathing trials. Diaphragm plays vital role in tidal volume generation. The main objective of the study was to compare ultrasound-based diaphragmatic excursion (DE) with RSBI as weaning predictors. Methods We conducted an observational prospective cohort study on patients on mechanical ventilation. During a spontaneous breathing trial (SBT) we simultaneously evaluated right hemidiaphragm excursion by using M-mode ultrasonography as well as the RSBI. To be included, patients must have been on mechanical ventilation for longer than 48 hours, have no excessive tracheobronchial secretions, and their underlying critical illness (for which they were intubated) must be resolved. Patients younger than 14 years, patients with neuromuscular disorder, patients with pneumothorax, and patients with cervical spine injury were excluded from the study. We analyzed the data to determine the significance of DE and RSBI. Results A total of 90 patients were included in our study; 54 (60%) were men, and 36 (40%) were women. The average age of all the participants was 55 ± 16 years (range, 19 to 83 years). Sixty-two patients (68.9%) were successfully weaned. The mean DE was 1.44 ± 0.26 cm, and the mean RSBI was 56.88 ± 8.30 in all patients. Successful weaning patients had a mean DE of 1.51 ± 0.26 cm and a mean RSBI of 54.05 ± 7.00. The greater the DE value, the greater the weaning success rate, and the lesser the RSBI value, the greater the weaning success rate. The area under the receiver operator curve for DE and RSBI was 0.795 and 0.815, respectively (p < 0.0001). Conclusion RSBI is an optimized clinical predictor in classifying weaning outcomes for intubated patients, but DE is also helpful in extubation assurance and reintubation prevention.