A Coordinated and Multidisciplinary Strategy can Reduce the Time for Antibiotics in Septic Patients at a University Hospital.

Objectives: We carried out this work with the aim of assessing the effectiveness of a set of interventions over time for the administration of antibiotics. Design: Prospective observational study. Setting: Patients admitted to the emergency room and ICU of the hospital where the study was conducted are evaluated daily for some sociodemographic and clinical variables. Among them are some quality indicators, such as the time between the diagnosis of sepsis or septic shock until the start of the infusion of antibiotics. This indicator reflects several aspects related to a set of assistance measures (adequacy of antibiotic dispensation, rapid response team (RRT), sepsis care quality improvement program, antimicrobial management program, improvements in emergency department assistance). Patients or participants: Patients with sepsis or septic shock were admitted to the ICU of a university and public hospital in southern Brazil. Main variables of interest: The time between the diagnosis of sepsis or septic shock and the beginning of the infusion of antibiotics. Results: Between 2013 and 2018, 1676 patients were evaluated. The mean time for antibiotic infusion decreased from 6.1 ± 8.6 hours to 1.7 ± 2.9 hours (p < 0.001). The percentage of patients who received antibiotics in the first hour increased from 20.7 to 59.0% (p < 0.001). Conclusion: In this study, we demonstrated that a set of actions adopted in a large tertiary hospital was associated with decreased time to start antibiotic therapy in septic patients. How to cite this article: Moraes RB, Haas JS, Vidart J, Nicolaidis R, Deutschendorf C, Moretti MMS, et al. A Coordinated and Multidisciplinary Strategy can Reduce the Time for Antibiotics in Septic Patients at a University Hospital. Indian J Crit Care Med 2023;27(7):465-469.

Prognostic accuracy of qSOFA at triage in patients with suspected infection in a Brazilian emergency department.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the prognostic accuracy of qSOFA for predicting in-hospital mortality among patients with suspected infection presenting to the ED of a public tertiary hospital in Brazil. METHODS: We performed a retrospective cohort study of consecutive adult patients (age ≥ 18 years) with suspected infection who presented to an academic tertiary ED in Porto Alegre (Southern Brazil) during an 18-month period. The qSOFA was calculated by using information collected at triage and patients were followed throughout hospitalization for the primary outcome of in-hospital mortality. Sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative likelihood ratios, and diagnostic odds ratios with corresponding 95% CIs were calculated for the qSOFA and qSOFA65. RESULTS: A total of 7523 ED visits of patients with suspected infection in which an intravenous antibiotic was administered within 24 h were included, which resulted in 908 in-hospital deaths (12.1%). There were 690 (9.2%) patients whose triage qSOFA was ≥2 points. When such cutoff was used, the sensitivity for in-hospital death was 24.6% (95% CI 21.8 to 27.4%) and the specificity was 92.9% (95% CI 92.3% to 93.5%). The sensitivity increased to 67.4% (95% CI 64.2% to 70.3%) when a cutoff of ≥1 was tested, but the specificity decreased to 55.3% (95% CI 54.1% to 56.5%). Using a cutoff of ≥2, the qSOFA65 had a sensitivity of 51.0% (95% CI 47.7% to 54.3%) and a specificity of 75.7% (95% CI 74.6% to 76.7%). CONCLUSIONS: The qSOFA score yielded very low sensitivity in predicting in-hospital mortality. Emergency physicians or ED triage nurses in low-to-middle income countries should not be using qSOFA or qSOFA65 as "rule-out" screening tools in the initial evaluation of patients with suspected infection.

The accuracy of the Manchester Triage System in an emergency service.

OBJECTIVE: To verify the accuracy of the Manchester Triage System (MTS) and the outcomes of adult patients in an emergency hospital service. METHOD: Cross-sectional study, conducted through an inspection of records of risk classification of adult patients treated in the emergency service of a hospital. RESULTS: The patients (n = 400) were classified according to priority levels, in red (0.8%), orange (58.2%), and yellow (41.0%). The accuracy levels between auditors and nurses were substantial for the flowchart (K = 0.75), and moderate for discriminating factors (k = 0.46) and priority levels (k = 0.42). The accuracy of the MTS was 68.8% with regard to priority levels. Regarding outcomes, 60% of patients were discharged, 37% were transferred to other units, and 3% died. CONCLUSION: The MTS proved to be a good predictor of the assessed outcomes, showing that 65.9% of Low Urgency patients progress to discharges, and 3.8% of High Urgency patients progress to death. The accuracy of the MTS was moderate, which suggests the need to implement inspections in emergency services.

Man vs. machine: Predicting hospital bed demand from an emergency department.

BACKGROUND: The recent literature reports promising results from using intelligent systems to support decision making in healthcare operations. Using these systems may lead to improved diagnostic and treatment protocols and to predict hospital bed demand. Predicting hospital bed demand in emergency department (ED) attendances could help resource allocation and reduce pressure on busy hospitals. However, there is still limited knowledge on whether intelligent systems can operate as fully autonomous, user-independent systems. OBJECTIVE: Compare the performance of a computer-based algorithm and humans in predicting hospital bed demand (admissions and discharges) based on the initial SOAP (Subjective, Objective, Assessment, Plan) records of the ED. METHODS: This was a retrospective cohort study that compared the performance of humans and machines in predicting hospital bed demand from an ED. It considered electronic medical records (EMR) of 9030 patients (230 used as a testing set, and hence evaluated both by humans and by an algorithm, and 8800 used as a training set exclusively by the algorithm) who visited the ED of a tertiary care and teaching public hospital located in Porto Alegre, Brazil between January and December 2014. The machine role was played by Support Vector Machine Classifier and the human prediction was performed by four ED physicians. Predictions were compared in terms of sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, and area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUROC). RESULTS: All graders achieved similar accuracies. The accuracy by AUROC for the testing set was 0.82 [95% confidence interval (CI) of 0.77-0.87], 0.80 (95% CI: 0.75-0.85), 0.76 (95% CI: 0.71-0.81) for novice physicians, machine, experienced physicians, respectively. Processing time per test EMR was 0.00812±0.0009 seconds. In contrast, novice physicians took on average 156.80 seconds per test EMR, while experienced physicians took on average 56.40 seconds per test EMR. CONCLUSIONS: Our data indicated that the system could predict patient admission or discharge states with 80% accuracy, which was similar the performance of novice and experienced physicians. These results suggested that the algorithm could operate as an autonomous and independent system to complete this task.

The accuracy of the Manchester Triage System in an emergency service / Precisión del Sistema de Triaje Manchester en un servicio de emergencia / Acurácia do Sistema de Triagem de Manchester em um serviço de emergência

ABSTRACT Objective: To verify the accuracy of the Manchester Triage System (MTS) and the outcomes of adult patients in an emergency hospital service. Method: Cross-sectional study, conducted through an inspection of records of risk classification of adult patients treated in the emergency service of a hospital. Results: The patients (n = 400) were classified according to priority levels, in red (0.8%), orange (58.2%), and yellow (41.0%). The accuracy levels between auditors and nurses were substantial for the flowchart (K = 0.75), and moderate for discriminating factors (k = 0.46) and priority levels (k = 0.42). The accuracy of the MTS was 68.8% with regard to priority levels. Regarding outcomes, 60% of patients were discharged, 37% were transferred to other units, and 3% died. Conclusion: The MTS proved to be a good predictor of the assessed outcomes, showing that 65.9% of Low Urgency patients progress to discharges, and 3.8% of High Urgency patients progress to death. The accuracy of the MTS was moderate, which suggests the need to implement inspections in emergency services.

RESUMEN Objetivo: Verificar la precisión del Sistema de Triaje Manchester (STM) y los resultados de pacientes adultos en un servicio de emergencia en un hospital. Método: estudio transversal, realizado a través de un proceso de auditoría de registros de detección con clasificación de riesgo de pacientes adultos tratados en un servicio hospitalario de emergencia. Resultados: Los pacientes (n = 400) se clasificaron según el nivel de prioridad en rojo (0.8%), naranja (58.2%) y amarillo (41.0%). Niveles de flujo de trabajo entre auditores y enfermeras (K = 0.75), moderados para discriminadores (k = 0.46) y nivel de prioridad (k = 0.42). La precisión del STM fue del 68.8% en el nivel de prioridad. En cuanto a los resultados, el 60% de los pacientes fueron dados de alta, el 37% fueron transferidos a otras unidades, el 3% falleció. Conclusión: El STM demostró ser un buen predictor de los resultados evaluados, mostrando que el 65.9% de los pacientes de baja urgencia progresa al alta y el 3.8% de los pacientes de alta urgencia progresa a la muerte. La precisión del STM fue moderada, lo que sugiere la necesidad de implementar auditorías en los servicios de emergencia.

RESUMO Objetivo: Verificar a acurácia do Sistema de Triagem de Manchester (STM) e os desfechos dos pacientes adultos em um serviço de emergência hospitalar. Método: Estudo transversal, realizado por meio de um processo de auditoria dos registros de triagem com classificação de risco de pacientes adultos atendidos em um serviço de emergência hospitalar. Resultados: Os pacientes (n=400) foram classificados de acordo com o nível de prioridade em Vermelho (0,8%), Laranja (58,2%) e Amarelo (41,0%). A confiabilidade entre os auditores e enfermeiros foi substancial para fluxograma (K=0,75), moderada para discriminador (k=0,46) e nível de prioridade (k=0,42). A acurácia do STM foi de 68,8% no nível de prioridade. Em relação aos desfechos avaliados, 65,9% dos pacientes de Baixa Urgência evoluíram para alta, e 3,8% dos pacientes de Alta Urgência evoluíram para óbito. Conclusão: A acurácia do STM foi moderada. O STM se mostrou um bom preditor dos desfechos avaliados, evidenciando que a maioria dos pacientes de Baixa Urgência evoluem para alta, e 3,8% dos pacientes de Alta Urgência evoluem para óbito.

Ultrassonografia pulmonar na insuficiência cardíaca agudamente descompensada / Pulmonary ultrasonography in acute decompensated heart failure

Objetivos: revisar dados da literatura relacionados ao uso da ultrassonografia pulmonar como método diagnóstico na insuficiência cardíaca agudamente descompensada. Fonte de Dados: artigos pesquisados na base de dados PubMed e edições recentes de livros. Síntese dos Dados: a insuficiência cardíaca descompensada consiste em uma síndrome altamente prevalente nos serviços de emergência. Frequentemente, o diagnóstico diferencial com outras síndromes associadas à insuficiência respiratória aguda representa uma tarefa complexa para o médico da sala de emergência, visto que a análise clínica e a radiografia de tórax não apresentam suficiente especificidade. A ultrassonografia pulmonar vem sendo estudada como uma nova técnica para o diagnóstico de insuficiência cardíaca aguda. Conclusões: a ultrassonografia pulmonar possui boa sensibilidade e especificidade para edema pulmonar intersticial, além de ter baixo custo e ser de fácil aprendizado. Portanto, apresenta boa aplicabilidade para direcionamento diagnóstico, tanto para confirmação de edema intersticial, quanto para exclusão de outras morbidades.

Aims: To review literature data concerning the use of pulmonary ultrasonography as a diagnostic method in acute decompensated heart failure. Source of Data: Articles found in the PubMed database and recent editions of books. Summary of Findings: Acute decompensated heart failure is a highly prevalent condition in the emergency room. The differential diagnosis from other syndromes associated with acute respiratory failure often represents a complex task for the emergency room physician, since clinical examination and chest radiography do not have sufficient specificity. Pulmonary ultrasonography has been studied as a new technique for the diagnosis of acute heart failure. Conclusions: Pulmonary ultrasonography has good sensitivity and specificity for pulmonary interstitial edema, in addition to low cost and ease of learning. Hence it has a good applicability for targeting diagnosis, both for confirmation of interstitial edema and for excluding other illnesses.

Increase of adenine nucleotide hydrolysis in rat hippocampal slices after seizures induced by quinolinic acid.

Quinolinic acid (QUIN), an endogenous convulsant compound, overstimulates the glutamatergic system stimulating N-methyl-D-aspartate receptors, enhancing glutamate release and inhibiting glutamate uptake. Glutamate releases the neuroprotector adenosine, which in turn reduces glutamate release and depresses the neuronal activity. Additionally, adenine nucleotides are an important source of adenosine, by action of ecto-nucleotidases. Here we evaluated the adenine nucleotide hydrolysis in hippocampal slices of adult rats in different times after seizures induced by QUIN. After 45 min, there was an increase of ATP and ADP hydrolysis. After 5 h, there was an increase of ATP, ADP and AMP hydrolysis. After 12 h, there was an increase only of ATP hydrolysis. After 24 h, all hydrolysis returned to control levels. As slice preparations maintain tissue integrity, this study indicates, more than previously observed with synaptosomal preparations, that the extracellular production of the neuroprotector adenosine may be involved in brain responses to seizures.

Effect of DHEA glutamate release from synaptosomes of rats at different ages.

Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) exerts multiple effects in the central nervous system. Most of them seem to be mediated through their nongenomic actions on neurotransmitter receptors, and these actions occur within seconds or milliseconds. DHEA increases neuronal excitability, enhances neuronal plasticity, and has neuroprotective properties. By investigating glutamate release from synaptosomes of rats at different ages (from 17 days to 12 months), we observed that (i) there is an increase in basal and K(+)-stimulated L-[3H] glutamate release in rats at 12 months old, when compared to other ages; and (ii) there is an inhibitory effect of DHEA on basal L-[3H] glutamate release in 12 months old. This inhibitory effect of DHEA could be related to its reported protective role against excitotoxicity caused by overstimulation of the glutamatergic system and ageing.