A 53-year-old man was admitted in our intensive care unit after cardiac arrest secondary to massive hemoptysis 2 weeks after diagnosis of recurrence pulmonary tuberculosis. Toracic contrast-enhanced ...multidetector computed tomographic angiography revealed bilateral necrotic opacities and a right upper lobe Rasmussen’s aneurysm (Fig. 1a).
Background Extracorporeal carbon dioxide removal (ECCO.sub.2R) is a promising technique for the management of acute respiratory failure, but with a limited level of evidence to support its use ...outside clinical trials and/or data collection initiatives. We report a collaborative initiative in a large metropolis. Methods To assess on a structural basis the rate of utilization as well as efficacy and safety parameters of 2 ECCO.sub.2R devices in 10 intensive care units (ICU) during a 2-year period. Results Seventy patients were recruited in 10 voluntary and specifically trained centers. The median utilization rate was 0.19 patient/month/center (min 0.04; max 1.20). ECCO.sub.2R was started under invasive mechanical ventilation (IMV) in 59 patients and non-invasive ventilation in 11 patients. The Hemolung Respiratory Assist System (Alung) was used in 53 patients and the iLA Activve iLA kit (Xenios Novalung) in 17 patients. Main indications were ultraprotective ventilation for ARDS patients (n = 24), shortening the duration of IMV in COPD patients (n = 21), preventing intubation in COPD patients (n = 9), and controlling hypercapnia and dynamic hyperinflation in mechanically ventilated patients with severe acute asthma (n = 6). A reduction in median V.sub.T was observed in ARDS patients from 5.9 to 4.1 ml/kg (p 0.001). A reduction in PaCO.sub.2 values was observed in AE-COPD patients from 67.5 to 51 mmHg (p 0.001). Median duration of ECCO.sub.2R was 5 days (IQR 3-8). Reasons for ECCO.sub.2R discontinuation were improvement (n = 33), ECCO.sub.2R-related complications (n = 18), limitation of life-sustaining therapies or measures decision (n = 10), and death (n = 9). Main adverse events were hemolysis (n = 21), bleeding (n = 17), and lung membrane clotting (n = 11), with different profiles between the devices. Thirty-five deaths occurred during the ICU stay, 3 of which being ECCO.sub.2R-related. Conclusions Based on a registry, we report a low rate of ECCO.sub.2R device utilization, mainly in severe COPD and ARDS patients. Physiological efficacy was confirmed in these two populations. We confirmed safety concerns such as hemolysis, bleeding, and thrombosis, with different profiles between the devices. Such results could help to design future studies aiming to enhance safety, to demonstrate a still-lacking strong clinical benefit of ECCO.sub.2R, and to guide the choice between different devices. Trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov: Identifier: NCT02965079 retrospectively registered Keywords: Extracorporeal CO.sub.2 removal, Acute respiratory distress syndrome, COPD exacerbation, Safety
Diffuse alveolar haemorrhage (DAH) is a feature of several immune and nonimmune disorders. Reported prognosis is poor, with in-hospital mortality ranging from 20% to 100%. Early identification of ...prognostic factors may be useful in the initiation of appropriate treatment. We retrospectively analysed the charts of all patients referred to a university hospital for DAH between 1980 and 2008. Variables associated with in-hospital and long-term mortality were determined using a logistic regression model and the Kaplan-Meier method, respectively. Immunosuppressed patients were excluded. Overall, 97 patients were included in the study. In-hospital mortality was 24.7%. Factors associated with in-hospital mortality were shock (OR 77.5, 95% CI 8.9-677.2), glomerular filtration rate <60 mL x min(-1) (OR 11.2, 95% CI 1.8-68.4) and plasmatic lactate dehydrogenase level more than twice the normal value (OR 12.1, 95% CI 1.7-84.3). Mortality among discharged patients was 16.4% with a median follow-up duration of 34 months. Factors associated with increased long-term mortality in univariate analysis were age over 60 yrs (p = 0.026), cardiovascular comorbidity (p = 0.027) and end-stage renal failure with dependence on haemodialysis (p = 0.026). Patients with immune and nonimmune DAH had similar outcomes. Early outcome depended on nonpulmonary organ failures. Conversely, late outcome was related to age, cardiac comorbidities and the need for haemodialysis.
Purpose
Previous clinical trials suggested that inhaled nitric oxide (iNO) could have beneficial effects in sickle cell disease (SCD) patients with acute chest syndrome (ACS).
Methods
To determine ...whether iNO reduces treatment failure rate in adult patients with ACS, we conducted a prospective, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trial. iNO (80 ppm,
N
= 50) gas or inhaled nitrogen placebo (
N
= 50) was delivered for 3 days. The primary end point was the number of patients with treatment failure at day 3, defined as any one of the following: (1) death from any cause, (2) need for endotracheal intubation, (3) decrease of PaO
2
/FiO
2
≥ 15 mmHg between days 1 and 3, (4) augmented therapy defined as new transfusion or phlebotomy.
Results
The two groups did not differ in age, gender, genotype, or baseline characteristics and biological parameters. iNO was well tolerated, although a transient decrease in nitric oxide concentration was mandated in one patient. There was no significant difference in the primary end point between the iNO and placebo groups 23 (46 %) and 29 (58 %); odds ratio (OR), 0.8; 95 % CI, 0.54–1.16;
p
= 0.23. A post hoc analysis of the 45 patients with hypoxemia showed that those in the iNO group were less likely to experience treatment failure at day 3 7 (33.3 %) vs 18 (72 %); OR = 0.19; 95 % CI, 0.06–0.68;
p
= 0.009.
Conclusions
iNO did not reduce the rate of treatment failure in adult SCD patients with mild to moderate ACS. Future trials should target more severely ill ACS patients with hypoxemia.
Clinical trial registration
NCT00748423.
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