[Ability of qSOFA1-lactate to predict 30-day mortality in patients seen for infection in the Emergency Department]. / Capacidad del qSOFA1-lactato para predecir mortalidad a 30 días en los pacientes atendidos por infección en urgencias.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate lactate and the Quick Sepsis-Related Organ Failure Assessment (qSOFA) and compare their ability to predict 30-day mortality in patients treated for infection in emergency departments (ED). METHODS: Prospective multicenter observational cohort study. We enrolled a convenience sample of patients aged 18 years or older attended in 71 Spanish ED from October 1, 2019, to March 31, 2020. Each model's predictive power was analyzed with the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC), and its values of sensitivity (Se), specificity (Sp), positive predictive value (PPV) and negative (NPV). RESULTS: A total of 4439 patients with a mean (SD) age of 18 years were studied; 2648 (59.7%) were men and 459 (10.3%) died within 30 days. For 30-day mortality, the AUC-COR obtained with the qSOFA = 1 model plus 2 mmol/l lactate was 0.66 (95% CI, 0.63-0.69) with Se: 68%, Es: 70% and NPV:92%, while qSOFA = 1 obtained AUC-COR of 0.52 (95% CI, 0.49-0.55) with a Se:42%, Es:64% and NPV:90%. CONCLUSIONS: To predict 30-day mortality in patients presenting to the ED due to an episode of infection, the qSOFA =1 + lactate≥2 mmol/L model significantly improves the predictive power achieved individually by qSOFA1 and becomes very similar to qSOFA≥2.

Situación actual de la atención a las enfermedades emergentes en los servicios de urgencias hospitalarias españoles / Current status of medical care of emerging infectious diseases at hospital emergency services in Spain

Fundamento: Conocer la situación organizativa de los hospitales españoles de cara a facilitar la atención adecuadaen los servicios de urgencias (SUH) de los pacientes queacudan con sospecha de infecciones de origen tropical. Método: Estudio descriptivo transversal mediante cuestionario en formato Google Forms® enviado a los miembros delgrupo de INFURG-SEMES. Se estudiaron variables como eltamaño del hospital a través del número de camas, el númerode urgencias de patología tropical, la existencia de protocolos de medicina tropical, de pruebas diagnósticas urgentes otratamiento antimalárico. Resultados: Se envió el formulario a 75 hospitales, obteniendo respuesta de 42 servicios de urgencias (55%), pertenecientes a 10 comunidades autónomas. Veinticuatro (57,1%)tenían más de 500 camas. Solo cinco hospitales (11,9%) podían diagnosticar malaria y dengue las 24 horas. En 19 hospitales (45,3%) no existía ningún protocolo de enfermedadtropical. En siete hospitales (16,7%) se realizaban diez o másasistencias/día. En los hospitales de mayor tamaño era másfrecuente la existencia de un servicio de enfermedades infecciosas independiente del servicio de Medicina Interna, unaunidad de medicina tropical, un infectólogo de guardia y unmicrobiólogo de guardia. No existen diferencias estadísticamente significativas entre los hospitales de mayor y menortamaño en cuanto a la capacidad para realizar diagnósticos otratamiento adecuados durante las 24 horas. Conclusiones: La atención de la patología importada supone un volumen no despreciable de consultas en los SUH,donde en general, se observa una ausencia de protocolosespecíficos, en especial, el protocolo específico de malaria,así como de escasa disponibilidad de prueba diagnósticaurgente de malaria.(AU)

Background: The aim of this study is to determine the current status of Spanish Hospital Emergency Services (HES) indiagnosing and treating the most prevalent tropical diseases (TD) in Spain. Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive study was carriedout, using a questionnaire in Google Forms® sent to members of the INFURG-SEMES group. The following variableswere analyzed: the size of the hospital in terms of numberof beds, number of tropical disease emergencies, existenceof tropical medicine protocols, urgent diagnostic tests orantimalarial treatment. Results: The form was sent to 75 hospitals. Responses wereobtained from 42 emergency services (55%) in 10 Autonomous Communities. Twenty-four (57.1%) had >500 beds.Only five hospitals (11.9%) have the facilities to diagnosemalaria and dengue 24 hours a day. There was no tropicaldisease protocol in 19 (45.3%) hospitals. Seven (16.7%)hospitals had ≥ 10 attendances/day. Larger hospitals weremore likely to have an infectious disease unit independentfrom Internal Medicine service, along with a tropical medicine unit, and an on-call infectious disease specialist andmicrobiologist. There are no statistically significant differences between larger and smaller hospitals in terms of theircapacity to carry out appropriate diagnoses or treatmentsin 24 hours. Conclusion: Care and treatment of emerging diseases arenow a sizeable percentage of the consultations at an HES.Such units generally lack specific protocols, particularly formalaria. Urgent diagnostic testing for malaria is also needed.(AU)

Análisis de la evolución de consultas atendidas en los servicios deurgencias españoles durante la primera ola pandémica / Analysis of the evolution of patients attended in Spanish emergency departments during the first wave of the pandemic

Fundamento: Describir el número de consultas, total y porCOVID-19, atendidas en servicios de urgencias hospitalarios(SUH) españoles durante marzo y abril de 2020, compararlocon el mismo periodo del año anterior, cuantificar el cambiode actividad asistencial e investigar la posible influencia deltamaño del hospital y de la seroprevalencia provincial deCOVID-19. Métodos: Estudio transversal. Se envió una encuesta a todoslos responsables de SUH españoles del sistema público de salud sobre el número de consultas atendidas durante marzo yabril de 2019 y de 2020. Se calculó el cambio de actividad asistencial por comunidad autónoma, y se comparó en función deltamaño del hospital y del impacto provincial de la pandemia.Resultados: Participaron el 66 % de los 283 SUH. Se observó undescenso del 49,2 % de las consultas totales (solo los SUH deCastilla-La Mancha mostraron un descenso inferior al 30 %) ydel 60 % de las consultas no-COVID-19 (solo los SUH de Asturias y Extremadura mostraron un descenso inferior al 50 %). elcambio de actividad asistencial no difirió en función del tamaño del hospital, pero sí en relación al impacto provincial de lapandemia, con una correlación directa respecto al descensode actividad no-COVID-19 (a mayor impacto, mayor descenso;R2 = 0,05; p = 0,002) e inversa en relación a la actividad global (amayor impacto, menor descenso; R2 = 0,05; p = 0,002).Conclusiones: Durante la primera ola pandémica descendió elnúmero de consultas en los SUH, si bien dicho descenso nose explica únicamente por la incidencia local de la pandemia.(AU)

Background: To describe the number of visits (total and perCOVID-19) attended by the Spanish hospital emergency departments (EDs) during March and April 2020 compared to thesame period in 2019, and to calculate the quantitative changesin healthcare activity and investigate the possible influence ofhospital size and regional COVID-19 seroprevalence. Method: Cross-sectional study that analyzes the number ofvisits to Spanish public EDs, reported through a survey ofED chiefs during the study periods. Changes in healthcareactivity were described in each autonomous community andcompared according to hospital size and the regional impactof the pandemic. Results: The 66% of the 283 Spanish EDs participated in thestudy. The total number of patients attended decreased to49.2 % (< 30 % in the Castilla-La Mancha region), with a 60 %reduction in non-COVID-19 patients (reduction < 50 % only inthe regions of Asturias and Extremadura). While there wereno differences in changes of healthcare activity according tothe size of the hospital, there were differences in relation tothe regional impact of the pandemic, with a direct correlationrelated to the decrease in non-COVID-19 activity (the greaterthe impact, the greater the decrease; R2 = 0.05; p = 0.002) andan inverse correlation to the overall activity (the greater theimpact, the lesser the decrease; R2 = 0.05; p = 0.002). Conclusion: There was a very significant decrease in the numberof ED visits during the first pandemic wave, although this decreasecannot be explained solely by the local incidence of the pandemic.(AU)

[Analysis of the evolution of patients attended in Spanish emergency departments during the first wave of the pandemic].

BACKGROUND: To describe the number of visits (total and per COVID-19) attended by the Spanish hospital emergency departments (EDs) during the first wave of the pandemic (March-April 2020) compared to the same period in 2019, and to calculate the quantitative changes in healthcare activity and investigate the possible influence of hospital size and COVID-19 seroprevalence. METHOD: Cross-sectional study that analyzes the number of visits to Spanish public EDs, reported through a survey of ED chiefs during the study periods. Changes in healthcare activity were described in each autonomous community and com-pared according to hospital size and the provincial impact of the pandemic. RESULTS: A total of 187 (66?%) of the 283 Spanish EDs participated in the study. The total number of patients attended de-creased to 49.2?% (

[Map of sexually transmitted disease care in Spanish emergency departments]. / Mapa de la atención a las infecciones de transmisión sexual en los servicios de urgencias españoles.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the approaches used in Spanish emergency departments (EDs) in patients suspected of having sexually transmitted diseases (STD) analysed according to the size of the hospital, ED census and autonomous community. METHODS: Questionnaire to the heads of 282 public EDs (7/24) related to emergency routines for patients with suspected STD. Results compared using odds-ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (95%CI) according to hospital size (large vs medium-small: ≥500 vs. <500 beds) and ED census (high vs. medium-low: ≥200 vs. <200 patients/day), by autonomous community. RESULTS: A total of 250 EDs responded (89%). With protocol for STD 36% of EDs [>60% Catalonia, Vasque Country, more in large hospitals (LH), (OR=2.65, 95%CI=1.46-4.82) and high census (HCEN) EDs, (OR=3.49, 95%CI=2.03-5.98)]. 70% obtained exudate sampling (>80% Catalonia, Madrid, Castilla-La Mancha, Aragón, Navarra, Vasque Country), 44% STD serology (>60% Madrid) and 35% HIV serology [(>60% Navarra, Baleares; more in LH (OR=2.43, 95%CI=1.34-4.42) and HCEN EDs (OR=1.94, 95%CI=1.15-3.29)]. At discharge, follow-up in hospital outpatients clinics 53% of EDs [>60% Catalonia, Comunidad Valenciana, Murcia, Castilla-La Mancha, Vasque Country, Asturias; more in LH (OR=2.45, 95%CI=1.31-4.57) and HCEN EDs (OR=2.25, 95%CI=1.35-3.76)] and by primary care 28% (>80% Cantabria). In 55% of EDs, patients are discharged with a scheduled follow-up (>80% Extremadura, La Rioja, Navarra) and 32% visit next workday [>60% Vasque Country; more in LH (OR=3.43, 95%CI=1.87-6.30) and HCEN EDs (OR=3.63, 95%CI=2.08-6.37)]. CONCLUSIONS: The care of patients with suspected STD is not homogeneous in Spanish EDs. Areas of improvement were detected, especially the need for specific diagnostic and follow-up protocols.

[Usefulness of the 5MPB-Toledo model to predict bacteremia in patients with community-acquired pneumonia in the Emergency Department]. / Utilidad del modelo 5MPB-Toledo para predecir bacteriemia en el paciente con neumonía adquirida en la comunidad en el Servicio de Urgencias.

OBJECTIVE: To analyse a new risk score to predict bacteremia in the patients with Community-acquired Pneumonia (CAP) in the emergency departments. METHODS: Prospective and multicenter observational cohort study of the blood cultures ordered in 74 Spanish emergency departments for patients with CAP seen from November 1, 2019, to March 31, 2020. The predictive ability of the model was analyzed with the area under the Receiver Operating Characteristic curve (AUC-ROC). The prognostic performance for true bacteremia was calculated with the chosen cut-off for getting the sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive value. RESULTS: A total of 1,020 blood samples wered cultured. True cases of bacteremia were confirmed in 162 (15.9%). The remaining 858 cultures (84.1%) wered negative. And, 59 (5.8%) were judged to be contaminated. The model´s area under the receiver operating characteristic curve was 0.915 (95% CI, 0.898-0.933). The prognostic performance with a model´s cut-off value of ≥ 5 points achieved 97.5% (95% CI, 95.1-99.9) sensitivity, 73.2% (95% CI, 70.2-76.2) specificity, 40.9% (95% CI, 36.4-45.1) positive predictive value and 99.4% (95% CI, 99.1-99.8) negative predictive value. CONCLUSIONS: The 5MPB-Toledo score is useful for predicting bacteremia in the patients with CAP seen in the emergency departments.

[Current status of medical care of emerging infectious diseases at hospital emergency services in Spain].

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study is to determine the current status of Spanish Hospital Emergency Services (HES) in diagnosing and treating the most prevalent tropical diseases (TD) in Spain. METHODS: A cross-sectional descriptive study was carried out, using a questionnaire in Google Forms® sent to members of the INFURG-SEMES group. The following variables were analyzed: the size of the hospital in terms of number of beds, number of tropical disease emergencies, existence of tropical medicine protocols, urgent diagnostic tests or antimalarial treatment. RESULTS: The form was sent to 75 hospitals. Responses were obtained from 42 emergency services (55%) in 10 Autonomous Communities. Twenty-four (57.1%) had >500 beds. Only five hospitals (11.9%) have the facilities to diagnose malaria and dengue 24 hours a day. There was no tropical disease protocol in 19 (45.3%) hospitals. Seven (16.7%) hospitals had =?10 attendances/day. Larger hospitals were more likely to have an infectious disease unit independent from Internal Medicine service, along with a tropical medicine unit, and an on-call infectious disease specialist and microbiologist. There are no statistically significant differences between larger and smaller hospitals in terms of their capacity to carry out appropri-ate diagnoses or treatments in 24 hours. CONCLUSION: Care and treatment of emerging diseases are now a sizeable percentage of the consultations at an HES. Such units generally lack specific protocols, particularly for malaria. Urgent diagnostic testing for malaria is also needed.

[Comparison of the demographic characteristics and comorbidities of patients with COVID-19 who died in Spanish hospitals based on whether they were or were not admitted to an intensive care unit]. / Comparación de las características demográficas y comorbilidad de los pacientes con COVID-19 fallecidos en hospitales españoles, en función de si ingresaron o no en Cuidados Intensivos.

OBJECTIVE: To describe and compare the demographic characteristics and comorbidities of patients with COVID-19 who died in Spanish hospitals during the 2020 pandemic based on whether they were or were not admitted to an intensive care unit (ICU) prior to death. METHODS: We performed a secondary analysis of COVID-19 patients who died during hospitalization included by 62 Spanish emergency departments in the SIESTA cohort. We collected the demographic characteristics and comorbidities, determined both individually and estimated globally by the Charlson index (ChI). Independent factors related to ICU admission were identified and different analyses of sensitivity were performed to contrast the consistency of the findings of the principal analysis. RESULTS: We included the 338 patients from the SIESTA cohort that died during hospitalization. Of these, 77 (22.8%) were admitted to an ICU before dying. After multivariate adjustment, 3 out of the 20 basal characteristics analyzed in the present study were independently associated with ICU admission: dementia (no patients with dementia who died were admitted to the ICU: OR = 0, 95%CI = not calculable), active cancer (OR = 0.07; 95%CI = 0.02-0.21) and age (< 70 years: OR = 1, reference; 70-74 years: OR = 0.21; 95%CI = 0.08-0.54; 75-79 years: OR = 0.21; 95%CI = 0.08-0.54; ≥ 80 years: OR = 0.02; 95%CI = 0.01-0.05). The probability of ICU admission significantly increased in parallel to the ChI, even after adjustment for age (ChI 0 points: OR = 0, reference; ChI 1 point: OR = 0.36; 95%CI = 0.16-0.83; ChI 2 points: OR = 0.36; 95%CI = 0.16-0.83; ChI >2 points: OR = 0.09; 95%CI = 0.04-0.23). The sensitivity analyses showed no gross differences compared to the principal analysis. CONCLUSIONS: The profile of COVID-19 patients who died without ICU admission is similar to that observed in the usual medical practice before the pandemic. The basal characteristics limiting their admission were age and global burden due to comorbidity, especially dementia and active cancer.

[Development of a predictive model for hospital mortality and re-admission in a cohort of infected patients that require hospitalization]. / Desarrollo de un modelo predictivo para mortalidad y otro para reingreso hospitalario en una cohorte de paciente con infección que requieren hospitalización.

OBJECTIVE: The aims of the study were: to develop a predictive model for hospital mortality and another for hospital re-admission, to identify the impact of antibiotic delay in the mortality rate and, to report the rate of inappropriate antibiotic therapy. METHODS: A cohort and retrospective study was conducted at the HM Sanchinarro University Hospital during the period September 1st, 2012 to March 31th, 2013. The inclusion criteria were: age> 18 years, hospital admission from the ED with a diagnosis of bacterial infection. The exclusion criteria were: suspected viral infection, negative bacteriological cultures, life expectancy less than 6 months, lack of clinical information, assistance exclusively by the trauma emergency department. Two logistic models were made (hospital mortality and hospital re-admission). RESULTS: A total of 517 patients were included. The final mortality model (30 deaths) include the following variables: respiratory rate (OR 1.12; IC95% 1.02; 1.22), oxygen saturation (OR 0.92; IC95% 0.87; 0.98), creatinine (OR 2.33; IC95% 1.62; 3.36), COPD (OR 3.02; IC95% 1.06; 8.21), cancer (OR 3.34; IC95% 1.07; 9.98) and chemotherapy in the last 3 months (OR 4.83; IC95% 1.54; 16.41). The final model for hospital re-admission (28 re-admissions) include the following variables: hepatopathy (OR 5.51; IC95% 1.57; 16.88), GPT (OR 1.005; IC95% 1.003; 1.008), history of stroke (OR 5.06; IC95% 1.04; 18.80) and arterial hypertension (OR 3.15; IC95% 1.38; 7.56). The antibiotic therapy delays not influenced the mortality or re-admission rate. In 24.3% the causative microorganism was identified and antibiotic treatment was inappropriate 19.6%. CONCLUSIONS: Hospital mortality rate was 5.8% and readmission rate was 5.7%. Variables associated with mortality differ from those associated with re-admission. The delay in the antibiotic initiation was not associated with a deleterious effect. Antibiotic therapy was inadequate in almost 20% of patients.

Prognostic accuracy of SIRS criteria, qSOFA score and GYM score for 30-day-mortality in older non-severely dependent infected patients attended in the emergency department.

The aim of this study was to determine the accuracy of systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS), quick Sepsis-related Organ Failure Assessment (qSOFA) score and GYM score to predict 30-day mortality in older non-severely dependent patients attended for an episode of infection in the emergency department (ED). We performed an analytical, observational, prospective cohort study including patients 75 years of age or older, without severe functional dependence, attended for an infectious process in 69 Spanish EDs for 2-day three-seasonal periods. Demographic, clinical and analytical data were collected. The primary outcome was 30-day mortality after the index event. We included 1071 patients, with a mean age of 83.6 [standard deviation (SD) 5.6] years; 544 (50.8%) were men. Seventy-two patients (6.5%) died within 30 days. SIRS criteria ≥ 2 had a sensitivity of 65% [95% confidence interval (CI) 53.1-75.9] and a specificity of 49% (95% CI 46.0-52.3), a qSOFA score ≥ 2 had a sensitivity of 28% (95% CI 18.2-39.8) and a specificity of 94% (95% CI 91.9-95.1), and a GYM score ≥ 1 had a sensitivity of 81% (95% CI 69.2-88.6) and a specificity of 45% (95% CI 41.6-47.9). A GYM score ≥ 1 and a qSOFA score ≥ 2 were the cut-offs with the highest sensitivity (p < 0.001) and specificity (p < 0.001), respectively. The area under the curve (AUC) was 0.73 (95% CI 0.66-0.79; p < 0.001) for the GYM score, 0.69 (95% CI 0.61-0.76; p < 0.001) for the qSOFA score and 0.65 (95% CI 0.59-0.72; p < 0.001) for SIRS. A GYM score ≥ 1 may be the most sensitive score and a qSOFA score ≥ 2 the most specific score to predict 30-day mortality in non-severely dependent older patients attended for acute infection in EDs.

[Factors predicting failure in empirical antibiotic treatment]. / Factores predictores del fracaso al tratamiento antibiótico empírico.

Infections are one of the main causes of morbidity and mortality in the population. The choice of empirical treatment is one of the most common decisions facing the physician. This first decision has consequences in the prognosis of the patient and the costs associated with the process. This review attempts to summarize the aspects that can lead to failure of antibiotic treatment by considering microbiological and pharmacological aspects, patient profile and infectious focus control. In addition, a series of recommendations are established to minimize this risk, from the point of view of diagnostic accuracy, adequate severity stratification of the patient, knowledge of the pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic aspects of antibiotics and control of the infectious focus.

Predictive score of haematological toxicity in patients treated with linezolid.

OBJECTIVE: The aims of our study were to determine the factors associated with developing haematological toxicity (HT) in patients taking linezolid (LZD), to develop a predictive model of HT in these patients, and to evaluate factors associated with 30-day mortality. METHODS: This was an observational retrospective cohort study of patients treated for at least 5 days with LDZ in 2015. Demographic, clinical and analytical data were collected. Development of HT was defined as a 25% platelet count decrease between the basal count and the 1-week lab test. RESULTS: Five hundred forty-nine patients were finally included, mean age was 73.3 (SD 15.4) years, and 303 (55.2%) were men. One hundred seventy-five (30.1%) patients achieved HT criteria during treatment with LZD and 41 (7.5%) died. The final model included the presence of cerebrovascular disease (2 points), moderate or severe liver disease (2 points), renal failure (2 points) and basal platelet count less than 90,000/mm3 (8 points). This new model showed an AUC of 0.711 (IC 95% 0.664-0.757; p < 0.001) to predict the development of HT. The probability of HT based on this classification was 6.2, 29.9 and 76.5% for low (0-4 points), intermediate (5-10 points) and high risk (>10 points), respectively. The independent variables associated with 30-day mortality were metastatic solid tumor, lymphoma, age >75 years and HT. CONCLUSION: This score could help in the identification of patients with high risk for HT and assess the use of an antibiotic other than LZD, an important issue considering its relation with 30-day mortality observed in our study.

Key issues in the infected patient care in the Emergency Department.

OBJECTIVE: To develop a set of recommendations, by consensus of Emergency Medicine experts, on key aspects related to the care of adult patients with acute infection attended in Spanish emergency departments (ED). METHODS: The study was divided into three phases: 1) To design a questionnaire by a coordinating group; 2) To conduct a survey in ED physicians in order to know their opinion on the issues raised by the coordinating group; 3) To develop a number of recommendations based on the responses to the questionnaire and their subsequent discussion. RESULTS: A group of 28 experts from different Spanish ED, as well as 5 members of the coordinating group, with knowledge and experience in the management of infectious diseases in ED, conducted a round of voting to a questionnaire of 18 issues grouped into three sections: 1) identification and stratification of the severity; 2) diagnosis and treatment; 3) management. CONCLUSIONS: A monitoring system and proper training of the entire healthcare team are required, as well as extensive knowledge on these issues, to ensure adequate and effective care for these patients. It is essential to educate and train all health staff, especially in the ED, because it is the initial point of contact for most patients with an infection. The experts established proposals based on survey questions and the discussion.

Superior mesenteric venous thrombosis: a retrospective study of thirteen cases.

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the epidemiology, associated risk factors, clinical presentation, diagnostic methods, treatment, and evolution of patients diagnosed with superior mesenteric venous thrombosis (SMVT) at an university hospital in Madrid. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN: Retrospective and descriptive study. We review the medical records of patients with this diagnosis in our hospital from January 1998 to December 2002. Data were processed by using the SPSS vs. 11 software. PATIENTS: All thirteen subjects diagnosed with SMVT in that period were included. RESULTS: Associated risk factors included tumoral conditions (5 patients), acute abdominal pathology (2), polyglobulia (1), prothrombin gene mutation (1), and anticardiolipin antibodies (1). No predisposing factor was found in 3 patients. Clinical presentation for all patients was abdominal pain, with nausea and vomiting being the second symptom in frequency (7). The diagnosis was reached by abdominal CT (9), arteriography (2), ultrasounds (1), and histology after intestinal resection (1). Treatment with only anticoagulation was initiated in 4 patients, whereas anticoagulation and surgery were performed in 5 cases. In 4 subjects no specific treatment was prescribed and only palliative measures were established due to a baseline end-stage condition. Five patients died, and four of them had a neoplasic condition as associated risk factor. Mortality in our series was 38.5%. CONCLUSIONS: SMVT is a very rare disease that is often associated with neoplasic pathology, which influences its high mortality. Due to non specific symptoms, imaging is essential for the diagnosis and the detection of associated risk factors. In our series, computed tomography imaging was the most profitable test.