Project description:Rationale: Although gastrostomy tubes have shown to be of limited benefit in patients with advanced dementia, they continue to be used to deliver nutritional support in critically ill patients. The epidemiology and short-term outcomes are unclear. Objectives: To quantify national practice patterns and short-term outcomes of gastrostomy tube placement among the critically ill over the last two decades in the United States. Methods: Using the U.S. Agency for Healthcare and Research Quality's Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project's National Inpatient Sample, we evaluated trends in annual population-standardized rates of gastrostomy tube placement among critically ill adults from 1994 to 2014; we also quantified trends in length of stay, in-hospital mortality, and discharge location. We conducted sensitivity analyses among mechanically ventilated patients, survivors, and decedents of critical illness, and in a critically ill population excluding patients with dementia. Results: From 1994 to 2014, population-based rates of gastrostomy tube use in critically ill patients increased from 11.9 to 28.8 gastrostomies per 100,000 U.S. adults (peak in incidence in 2010), an increase of 142% (31,392-91,990 gastrostomy tubes in critically ill patients; P < 0.001). Patients receiving gastrostomy tubes during critical illness occupied a growing proportion of all gastrostomy tube placements, accounting for 19.6% of all gastrostomy tubes placed in 1994 and 50.8% in 2014. The rate of gastrostomies in critically ill patients remained roughly stable, from 2.5% of critically ill patients in 1994 to a peak of 3.7% in 2002 before declining again to 2.4% in 2014. Hospital length of stay and in-hospital mortality decreased among gastrostomy tube recipients (28.7 d to 20.5 d, P < 0.001; 25.9-11.3%, P < 0.001; respectively), whereas discharges to long-term facilities increased significantly (49.6-70.6%; P < 0.001). Sensitivity analyses among mechanically ventilated patients revealed similar increases in population-based estimates of gastrostomy tube placement. Conclusions: The incidence of gastrostomy tube placement among critically ill patients more than doubled between 1994 and 2014, with most patients being discharged to long-term care facilities. Critically ill patients are now the primary utilizer of gastrostomy tubes placed in the United States. Additional research is needed to better characterize the long-term risk and benefits of gastrostomy tube use in critically ill patients.
Project description:ImportanceMany patients who survive critical illness are left with laryngeal functional impairment from endotracheal intubation that permanently limits their recovery and quality of life. Although the risk for laryngeal injury increases with larger endotracheal tube sizes, there are no data delineating the association of smaller endotracheal tube sizes with survival or acute recovery from critical illness.ObjectiveTo determine if smaller endotracheal tubes are noninferior to larger endotracheal tubes with respect to critical illness outcomes.Design, setting, and participantsThis propensity score-matched retrospective cohort study included all adult patients who underwent endotracheal intubation in the emergency department or intensive care unit and received mechanical ventilation for at least 12 hours from June 2020 to November 2020 at a single tertiary referral academic medical center.ExposuresEndotracheal intubation.Main outcomes and measuresPropensity score-matched analyses were performed with respect to the primary end point of 30-day all-cause in-hospital survival as well as the secondary end points of duration of invasive mechanical ventilation, length of hospital stay, mean peak inspiratory pressure, 30-day readmission, need for reintubation, and need for tracheostomy or gastrostomy tube placement.ResultsOverall, 523 participants (64%) were men and 291 (36%) were women. Of these, 814 patients were categorized into 3 endotracheal tube groups: small for height (n = 182), appropriate for height (n = 408), and large for height (n = 224). There was not a significant difference in 30-day all-cause in-hospital survival between groups ([HR, 1.1; 95% CI, 0.7-1.7] for small vs appropriate; [HR, 1.1; 95% CI, 0.7-1.6] for large vs appropriate). Patients with small-for-height endotracheal tubes had longer intubation durations (mean difference, 32.5 hrs [95% CI, 6.4-58.6 hrs]) compared with patients with appropriate-for-height tubes.Conclusions and relevanceDespite differences in intubation duration, the results of this cohort study suggest that smaller endotracheal tube sizes are not associated with impaired survival or recovery from critical illness. They support future prospective exploration of the association of smaller endotracheal tube sizes with recovery from critical illness.
Project description:Maternal Phenylketonuria Syndrome (MPKU) can occur in infants born to mothers with PKU with poor metabolic control during pregnancy. Elevated phenylalanine (phe) acts as a teratogen to the developing fetus with consequences including intellectual disability, microcephaly, facial dysmorphism, growth retardation, and congenital heart disease. MPKU can be prevented if metabolic control is achieved by 8-10 weeks gestation. If control is not achieved, there is a significant risk for MPKU. Therefore, in women with poor metabolic control at time of pregnancy, establishing metabolic control quickly is important.Clinically, establishing metabolic control in women with PKU can present challenges. Social issues, psychological issues, and insufficient education about PKU play an important role in a patient's inability to reinstitute this challenging diet. Maintaining phe levels within a range to allow for infant growth, while preventing toxicity, is challenging, particularly for those women who no longer follow the PKU diet. Gastrostomy tube placement is an option to deliver medical formula to women who are unable to restart diet due to severe nausea or palatability issues.Here we discuss two pregnancies in which a gastrostomy tube was placed to achieve metabolic control after other measures failed to reduce phe concentrations into the recommended range. For these two pregnancies, placement of the gastrostomy tube led to improvement in phe levels with normal infant outcomes including normal growth, head circumference, and heart structure.
Project description:ObjectiveTo describe the variation in surgical gastrostomy tube (SGT) placement in premature infants among neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) in the United States.Study designWe identified 8,781 premature infants discharged from 114 NICUs in the Pediatrix Medical Group from 2010 to 2012. The outcome of interest was SGT placement prior to discharge home from an NICU. Unadjusted proportions and adjusted risk estimates were calculated to quantify variation observed among individual NICUs.ResultsSGT placement occurred in 360 of 8,781 (4.1%) of infants. Across NICUs, any gastrostomy tube placement ranged from none in 45 NICUs up to 19.6%. Adjusted risk estimates for factors associated with SGT placement included gestational age at birth (odds ratio [OR]: 0.7/week, 95% confidence interval[CI]: [0.65, 0.75]), small for gestational age status (OR: 2.78 [2.09, 3.71]), administration of antenatal steroids (OR: 0.69 [0.52, 0.92]), Hispanic ethnicity (OR: 0.54 [0.37, 0.78]), and higher 5-minute Apgar scores (7-10, OR: 0.54 [0.37, 0.79]).ConclusionIndividual NICU center has a strong clinical effect on the probability of SGT placement relative to other medical factors. Future work is needed to understand the cause of this variation and the degree to which it represents over or under use of gastrostomy tubes.
Project description:Prior research has indicated that adopting strict glycemic control measures might elevate the risk of hypoglycemia and result in higher mortality rates among critically ill patients. However, there is a lack of studies investigating the incidence of hypoglycemia and its consequential outcomes in real-world clinical settings. This retrospective cohort study was conducted at Taichung Veterans General Hospital, utilizing critical care databases covering the period from 2015 to 2020. The objective was to examine the outcomes and identify risk factors associated with hypoglycemia in critically ill patients. Out of the total of 16,699 patients admitted to the intensive care units (ICUs), 2,115(12.7%) experienced at least one episode of hypoglycemia were included in the analysis. Critically ill patients who developed hypoglycemia had a significantly higher hospital mortality rate compared to those who did not experience hypoglycemia. (48.9% vs. 15.9%, p < 0.001). Moreover, patients with more severe hypoglycemia exhibited a higher mortality rate (moderate hypoglycemia: hazard ratio [HR] 1.477, 95% confidence interval [C.I.] 1.351-1.614, p < 0.001; severe hypoglycemia: HR 1.847, 95% C.I. 1.607-2.123, p < 0.001) compared to those without hypoglycemia. Additionally, patients with greater frequency of hypoglycemic episodes also showed a higher mortality rate (one episode HR 1.504, 95% C.I. 1.366-1.657, p < 0.001; multiple episodes HR 1.613, 95% C.I. 1.444-1.801, p < 0.001) compared to those without hypoglycemia. Patient who experienced spontaneous hypoglycemia (53.9% vs. 42.4%, p < 0.001) and those without a prior diagnosis of diabetes (60.2% vs. 37.0%, p < 0.001) had higher mortality rate. Hypoglycemia frequently occurs and serves as an independent risk factor for mortality among critically ill individuals, particularly in cases of severe and recurrent episodes. Patients experiencing spontaneous hypoglycemia, as well as those lacking a diabetes diagnosis, demonstrated elevated mortality rates.
Project description:Inadvertent injury to interposing organs during percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG) tube placement is a feared complication of this common and generally safe procedure. Transhepatic PEG insertion is likely an underrepresented complication which may be identified incidentally on imaging or present with life-threatening conditions such as sepsis or massive bleeding. Use of ultrasound in patients with known hepatomegaly may possibly help avoid this complication. We hereby report a case of transhepatic PEG insertion, one of 16 only other cases published in the literature, and review the characteristics of the previous reported cases.
Project description:Nasogastric tube enteral nutrition (NGEN) should be initiated within 48 h for patients at high nutritional risk. However, whether small bowel enteral nutrition (SBEN) should be routinely used instead of NGEN to improve hospital mortality remains unclear. We retrospectively analyzed 113 critically ill patients with modified Nutrition Risk in Critically Ill (mNUTRIC) score ≥ 5 and feeding volume < 750 mL/day in the first week of their stay in the intensive care unit (ICU). Age, sex, mNUTRIC score, and Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation II (APACHE II) score were matched in the SBEN (n = 48) and NGEN (n = 65) groups. Through a univariate analysis, factors associated with hospital mortality were SBEN group (hazard ratio (HR), 0.56; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.31-1.00), Simplified Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) score on day 7 (HR, 1.12; 95% CI, 1.03-1.22), and energy intake achievement rate < 65% (HR, 2.53; 95% CI, 1.25-5.11). A multivariate analysis indicated that energy intake achievement rate < 65% on the third follow-up day (HR, 2.29; 95% CI, 1.12-4.69) was the only factor independently associated with mortality. We suggest initiation of SBEN on the seventh ICU day before parenteral nutrition initiation for critically ill patients at high nutrition risk.
Project description:Background: Alternative tobacco product (ATP) use has bee linked to critical illness, however, few studies have examined the use of these substances in critically ill populations. We sought to examine ATP use within critically ill patients and to define barriers in accurately assessing use within this population. Methods: We prospectively studied 533 consecutive patients from the Early Assessment of Renal and Lung Injury study, enrolled between 2013 and 2016 at a tertiary referral center and a safety-net hospital. ATP use information (electronic cigarettes, cigars, pipes, hookahs/waterpipes, and snus/chewing tobacco) was obtained from the patient or surrogate using a detailed survey. Reasons for non-completion of the survey were recorded, and differences between survey responders vs. non-responders, self- vs. surrogate responders, and ATP users vs. non-users were explored. Results: Overall, 80% (n = 425) of subjects (56% male) completed a tobacco product use survey. Of these, 12.2% (n = 52) reported current ATP use, while 5.6% reported using multiple ATP products. When restricted to subjects who were self-responders, 17% reported ATP use, while 10% reported current cigarette smoking alone. The mean age of ATP users was 57 ± 17 years. Those who did not complete a survey were sicker and more likely to have died during admission. Subjects who completed the survey as self-responders reported higher levels of ATP use than ones with surrogate responders (p < 0.0001). Conclusion: ATP use is common among critically ill patients despite them being generally older than traditional users. Survey self-responders were more likely than surrogate responders to report use. These findings highlight the importance of improving our current methods of surveillance of ATP use in older adults in the outpatient setting.
Project description:IntroductionThis study was conducted to provide Intensive Care Units and Emergency Departments with a set of practical procedures (check-lists) for managing critically-ill adult patients in order to avoid complications during intra-hospital transport (IHT).MethodsDigital research was carried out via the MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL and HEALTHSTAR databases using the following key words: transferring, transport, intrahospital or intra-hospital, and critically ill patient. The reference bibliographies of each of the selected articles between 1998 and 2009 were also studied.ResultsThis review focuses on the analysis and overcoming of IHT-related risks, the associated adverse events, and their nature and incidence. The suggested preventive measures are also reviewed. A check-list for quick execution of IHT is then put forward and justified.ConclusionsDespite improvements in IHT practices, significant risks are still involved. Basic training, good clinical sense and a risk-benefit analysis are currently the only deciding factors. A critically ill patient, prepared and accompanied by an inexperienced team, is a risky combination. The development of adapted equipment and the widespread use of check-lists and proper training programmes would increase the safety of IHT and reduce the risks in the long-term. Further investigation is required in order to evaluate the protective role of such preventive measures.