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Background: The updated Surviving Sepsis Campaign guidelines recommend a 1-hour window for completion of a sepsis care bundle; however, the effectiveness of the hour-1 bundle has not been fully evaluated. The present study aimed to evaluate the impact of hour-1 bundle completion on clinical outcomes in sepsis patients. Methods: This was a multicenter, prospective, observational study conducted in 17 intensive care units in tertiary hospitals in Japan. We included all adult patients who were diagnosed as having sepsis by Sepsis-3 and admitted to intensive care units from July 2019 to August 2020. Impacts of hour-1 bundle adherence and delay of adherence on risk-adjusted in-hospital mortality were estimated by multivariable logistic regression analyses. Results: The final study cohort included 178 patients with sepsis. Among them, 89 received bundle-adherent care. Completion rates of each component (measure lactate level, obtain blood cultures, administer broad-spectrum antibiotics, administer crystalloid, apply vasopressors) within 1 hour were 98.9%, 86.2%, 51.1%, 94.9%, and 69.1%, respectively. Completion rate of all components within 1 hour was 50%. In-hospital mortality was 18.0% in the patients with and 30.3% in the patients without bundle-adherent care (p = 0.054). The adjusted odds ratio of non-bundle-adherent versus bundle-adherent care for in-hospital mortality was 2.32 (95% CI 1.09–4.95) using propensity scoring. Non-adherence to obtaining blood cultures and administering broad-spectrum antibiotics within 1 hour was related to in-hospital mortality (2.65 [95% CI 1.25–5.62] and 4.81 [95% CI 1.38–16.72], respectively). The adjusted odds ratio for 1-hour delay in achieving hour-1 bundle components for in-hospital mortality was 1.28 (95% CI 1.04–1.57) by logistic regression analysis. Conclusion: Completion of the hour-1 bundle was associated with lower in-hospital mortality. Obtaining blood cultures and administering antibiotics within 1 hour may have been the components most contributing to decreased in-hospital mortality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Embolization is widely used for controlling arterial hemorrhage associated with pelvic fracture. However, the effect of a delay in embolization among hemodynamically stable patients at hospital arrival with a pelvic fracture is unknown. Therefore, our aim was to investigate the association between the time to embolization and mortality in hemodynamically stable patients at hospital arrival with a pelvic fracture. Methods: A multicenter, retrospective cohort study was undertaken using data from the Japan Trauma Data Bank between 2004 and 2018. Hemodynamically, stable patients with a pelvic fracture who underwent an embolization within 3 h were divided into six groups of 30-min blocks of time until pelvic embolization (0–30, 30–60, 60–90, 90–120, 120–150, and 150–180 min). We compared the adjusted 30-day mortality rate according to time to embolization. Results: We studied 620 hemodynamically stable patients with a pelvic fracture who underwent pelvic embolization within 3 h of hemorrhage. The median age was 68 (48–79) years and 55% were male. The median injury severity score was 26 (18–38). Thirty-day mortality was 8.9% (55/620) and 24-h mortality was 4.2% (26/619). A Cochran–Armitage test showed that a 30-min delay for embolization was associated with increased 30-day (p = 0.0186) and 24-hour (p = 0.033) mortality. Mortality within 0–30 min to embolization was 0%. The adjusted 30-day mortality rate increased with delayed embolization and was up to 17.0% (10.2–23.9) for the 150–180 min group. Conclusion: Delayed embolization was associated with increased mortality in pelvic fracture with hemodynamic stability at hospital arrival. When you decide to embolize pelvic fracture patients, the earlier embolization may be desirable to promote improved survival regardless of hemodynamics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: To assess whether there are temporal differences altering the clinical outcomes of severe trauma patients in Japan. Methods: This was a retrospective cohort study that used recorded data from the Japan Trauma Data Bank. Severe trauma patients who had an injury severity score of greater than 16 were included. The hospital arrival time was categorized into daytime (8 a.m.–7:59 p.m.) and nighttime (8 p.m.–7:59 a.m.). The hospital arrival day of the week was categorized into business days and non-business days. The primary outcome was in-hospital mortality. Results: A total of 65,136 severe trauma patients were analyzed. In-hospital mortality was 15.6% in the daytime and 14.4% in the nighttime, and 15.5%, and 14.6% on business days and non-business days, respectively. Nighttime was associated with decreased in-hospital mortality compared to daytime (odds ratio = 0.817, 95% confidence interval = 0.764–0.874) and a non-business day was not associated with in-hospital mortality. Conclusions: We did not find a negative off-hour effect on in-hospital mortality among severe trauma patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Diagnosing sepsis remains difficult because it is not a single disease but a syndrome with various pathogen- and host factor-associated symptoms. Sepsis-3 was established to improve risk stratification among patients with infection based on organ failures, but it has been still controversial compared with previous definitions. Therefore, we aimed to describe characteristics of patients who met sepsis-2 (severe sepsis) and sepsis-3 definitions. Methods: This was a multicenter, prospective cohort study conducted by 22 intensive care units (ICUs) in Japan. Adult patients (≥ 16 years) with newly suspected infection from December 2017 to May 2018 were included. Those without infection at final diagnosis were excluded. Patient's characteristics and outcomes were described according to whether they met each definition or not. Results: In total, 618 patients with suspected infection were admitted to 22 ICUs during the study, of whom 530 (85.8%) met the sepsis-2 definition and 569 (92.1%) met the sepsis-3 definition. The two groups comprised different individuals, and 501 (81.1%) patients met both definitions. In-hospital mortality of study population was 19.1%. In-hospital mortality among patients with sepsis-2 and sepsis-3 patients was comparable (21.7% and 19.8%, respectively). Patients exclusively identified with sepsis-2 or sepsis-3 had a lower mortality (17.2% vs. 4.4%, respectively). No patients died if they did not meet any definitions. Patients who met sepsis-3 shock definition had higher in-hospital mortality than those who met sepsis-2 shock definition. Conclusions: Most patients with infection admitted to ICU meet sepsis-2 and sepsis-3 criteria. However, in-hospital mortality did not occur if patients did not meet any criteria. Better criteria might be developed by better selection and combination of elements in both definitions. Trial registration: UMIN000027452 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Dysglycemia is frequently observed in patients with sepsis. However, the relationship between dysglycemia and outcome is inconsistent. We evaluate the clinical characteristics, glycemic abnormalities, and the relationship between the initial glucose level and mortality in patients with sepsis. Methods: This is a retrospective sub-analysis of a multicenter, prospective cohort study. Adult patients with severe sepsis (Sepsis-2) were divided into groups based on blood glucose categories (<70 (hypoglycemia), 70–139, 140–179, and ≥180 mg/dL), according to the admission values. In-hospital mortality and the relationship between pre-existing diabetes and septic shock were evaluated. Results: Of 1158 patients, 69, 543, 233, and 313 patients were categorized as glucose levels <70, 70–139, 140–179, ≥180 mg/dL, respectively. Both the Acute Physiological and Chronic Health Evaluation II and Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) scores on the day of enrollment were higher in the hypoglycemic patients than in those with 70–179 mg/dL. The hepatic SOFA scores were also higher in hypoglycemic patients. In-hospital mortality rates were higher in hypoglycemic patients than in those with 70–139 mg/dL (26/68, 38.2% vs 43/221, 19.5%). A significant relationship between mortality and hypoglycemia was demonstrated only in patients without known diabetes. Mortality in patients with both hypoglycemia and septic shock was 2.5-times higher than that in patients without hypoglycemia and septic shock. Conclusions: Hypoglycemia may be related to increased severity and high mortality in patients with severe sepsis. These relationships were evident only in patients without known diabetes. Patients with both hypoglycemia and septic shock had an associated increased mortality rate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Although attention has recently been afforded to home injury prevention for young children, we often encounter young children who have experienced indoor injuries at places other than the home. We aimed to identify characteristics of unintentional indoor injuries that occurred when young children were not at home. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of young children (aged <6 years) with indoor injuries from January to June 2017. We classified patients injured in hotel rooms as the "Hotel group" and compared them to patients injured at home ("Home group"). Results: Among 102 patients who met the study criteria, 33 patients (32.4%) were classified as the Hotel group. Falls were the most frequent cause of injury in both groups (Home, 56.5% versus Hotel, 87.9%). Falls from beds were more likely to happen in hotel rooms (1.4% versus 48.5%). In regard to fall‐associated injuries, head and / or facial injury was most frequent in both groups (Home, 92.3% versus Hotel, 89.7%). A suture and follow‐up were less likely in the Home group than in the Hotel group (18.8% versus 42.4%, 39.1% versus 69.7%, respectively). Conclusions: In hotel rooms, head and / or facial injuries due to falling from a bed were the most common types of injury, and they often needed more invasive procedures than home injuries. Injuries that tended to occur in hotel rooms are more predictable than home injuries. Modification of the surrounding environment has the potential to prevent unintentional injuries not only in the home environment but also in hotel rooms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Predisposing conditions and risk modifiers instead of causes and risk factors have recently been used as alternatives to identify patients at a risk of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). However, data regarding risk modifiers among patients with non-pulmonary sepsis is rare. Methods: We conducted a secondary analysis of the multicenter, prospective, Focused Outcomes Research in Emergency Care in Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome, Sepsis and Trauma (FORECAST) cohort study that was conducted in 59 intensive care units (ICUs) in Japan during January 2016–March 2017. Adult patients with severe sepsis caused by non-pulmonary infection were included, and the primary outcome was having ARDS, defined as meeting the Berlin definition on the first or fourth day of screening. Multivariate logistic regression modeling was used to identify risk modifiers associated with ARDS, and odds ratios (ORs) and their 95% confidence intervals were reported. The following explanatory variables were then assessed: age, sex, admission source, body mass index, smoking status, congestive heart failure, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, diabetes mellitus, steroid use, statin use, infection site, septic shock, and acute physiology and chronic health evaluation (APACHE) II score. Results: After applying inclusion and exclusion criteria, 594 patients with non-pulmonary sepsis were enrolled, among whom 85 (14.3%) had ARDS. Septic shock was diagnosed in 80% of patients with ARDS and 66% of those without ARDS (p = 0.01). APACHE II scores were higher in patients with ARDS [26 (22–33)] than in those without ARDS [21 (16–28), p < 0.01]. In the multivariate logistic regression model, the following were independently associated with ARDS: ICU admission source [OR, 1.89 (1.06–3.40) for emergency department compared with hospital wards], smoking status [OR, 0.18 (0.06–0.59) for current smoking compared with never smoked], infection site [OR, 2.39 (1.04–5.40) for soft tissue infection compared with abdominal infection], and APACHE II score [OR, 1.08 (1.05–1.12) for higher compared with lower score]. Conclusions: Soft tissue infection, ICU admission from an emergency department, and a higher APACHE II score appear to be the risk modifiers of ARDS in patients with non-pulmonary sepsis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Prognosis of cardiopulmonary arrest occurring in patients with blunt trauma is very poor; patients rarely recover from this condition. We either do not attempt cardiopulmonary resuscitation or terminate it after some time in blunt trauma–cardiopulmonary arrest cases. We presented a rare case of successful resuscitation of a patient with blunt trauma–cardiopulmonary arrest. Case presentation: A 54-year-old man was admitted to our emergency department after being injured in a traffic accident. The patient suffered from ventricular fibrillation, and spontaneous circulation was restored by a defibrillator. The estimated arrest time was 20 min. Discussion: On arrival of our emergency department, the patient showed intra-abdominal hemorrhage and we performed emergency surgery; 10 days after admission, the patient suffered from pulseless ventricular tachycardia—coronary angiography was performed, which revealed that the patient had coronary artery stenosis. Conclusion: We experienced trauma patients concealed with coronary artery stenosis. In traumatic arrest with ventricular fibrillation, it may be due to a medical reason, and more prolonged and intensive resuscitation may be considered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To investigate the impact of body temperature on disease severity, implementation of sepsis bundles, and outcomes in severe sepsis patients.Design: Retrospective sub-analysis.Setting: Fifty-nine ICUs in Japan, from January 2016 to March 2017.Patients: Adult patients with severe sepsis based on Sepsis-2 were enrolled and divided into three categories (body temperature < 36°C, 36-38°C, > 38°C), using the core body temperature at ICU admission.Interventions: None.Measurements and Main Results: Compliance with the bundles proposed in the Surviving Sepsis Campaign Guidelines 2012, in-hospital mortality, disposition after discharge, and the number of ICU and ventilator-free days were evaluated. Of 1,143 enrolled patients, 127, 565, and 451 were categorized as having body temperature less than 36°C, 36-38°C, and greater than 38°C, respectively. Hypothermia-body temperature less than 36°C-was observed in 11.1% of patients. Patients with hypothermia were significantly older than those with a body temperature of 36-38°C or greater than 38°C and had a lower body mass index and higher prevalence of septic shock than those with body temperature greater than 38°C. Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation II and Sequential Organ Failure Assessment scores on the day of enrollment were also significantly higher in hypothermia patients. Implementation rates of the entire 3-hour bundle and administration of broad-spectrum antibiotics significantly differed across categories; implementation rates were significantly lower in patients with body temperature less than 36°C than in those with body temperature greater than 38°C. Implementation rate of the entire 3-hour resuscitation bundle + vasopressor use + remeasured lactate significantly differed across categories, as did the in-hospital and 28-day mortality. The odds ratio for in-hospital mortality relative to the reference range of body temperature greater than 38°C was 1.760 (95% CI, 1.134-2.732) in the group with hypothermia. The proportions of ICU-free and ventilator-free days also significantly differed between categories and were significantly smaller in patients with hypothermia.Conclusions: Hypothermia was associated with a significantly higher disease severity, mortality risk, and lower implementation of sepsis bundles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To evaluate the possible association of vasopressor use with mortality in traumatic hemorrhagic shock patients.Design: Retrospective cohort study.Setting: Traumatic hemorrhagic shock patients at 260 emergency hospitals in Japan between 2004 and 2015.Patients: Three-thousand five-hundred fifty-one traumatic hemorrhagic shock patients who had systolic hypotension (< 90 mm Hg) on arrival at the emergency department and a blood transfusion received within the first 24 hours.Interventions: The use of vasopressor for traumatic hemorrhagic shock within the first 24 hours.Measurements and Main Results: Among 236,698 trauma patients, 3,551 were included in the study. Overall, 198 of 459 patients (43%) in the vasopressor+ group expired compared with 481 of 3,092 patients (16%) in the vasopressor- group. Use of vasopressor had an odds ratio of 2.172 (95% CI, 1.666-2.833) for in-hospital mortality adjusted for age, gender, year of onset, cause of injury, mechanism of injury, vital signs at the emergency department, Injury Severity Score, use of prehospital IV fluid, and volume of blood transfusion within the first 24 hours. In the propensity score-matched cohort and two subgroup analyses (massive transfusion and survivable injury models), use of vasopressor was associated with higher mortality (odds ratio, 2.168; 95% C, 1.442-3.320), (odds ratio, 2.029; 95% CI, 1.414-2.911; massive transfusion model), and (odds ratio, 1.959; 95% CI, 1.364-2.814; survivable injury model).Conclusions: Use of vasopressor for traumatic hemorrhagic shock was associated with mortality after controlling for biases (trauma severity; volume of fluid resuscitation). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: This study aimed to compare patient outcomes after splenic angioembolization (SAE) or splenectomy for isolated severe blunt splenic injury (BSI) with hemodynamic instability, and to identify potential candidates for SAE. Methods: Adult patients with isolated severe BSI (Abbreviated Injury Scale [AIS] 3–5) and hemodynamic instability between 2013 and 2019 were identified from the American College of Surgeons Trauma Quality Improvement (ACS TQIP) database. Hemodynamic instability was defined as an initial systolic blood pressure (SBP) <90 mmHg, heart rate (HR) >120 bpm, or lowest SBP <90 mmHg within 1 h after admission, with ≥1 unit of blood transfused within 4 h after admission. In-hospital mortality was compared between splenectomy and SAE groups using 2:1 propensity-score matching. The characteristics of unmatched and matched splenectomy patients were also compared. Results: A total of 478 patients met our inclusion criteria (332 splenectomy, 146 SAE). After propensity-score matching, 166 splenectomy and 83 SAE patients were compared. Approximately 85% of propensity-score matched patients sustained AIS 3/4 injuries, and 50% presented with normal SBP and HR before becoming hemodynamically unstable. The median time to intervention (splenectomy or SAE) was 137 min (interquartile range 94–183). In-hospital mortality between splenectomy and SAE groups was not significantly different (5.4% vs. 4.8%, p = 1.000). More than half of unmatched patients in the splenectomy group sustained AIS 5 injuries and presented with initially unstable hemodynamics. The median time to splenectomy in such patients was significantly shorter than in matched splenectomy patients (67 vs. 132 min, p < 0.001). Conclusion: Splenectomy remains the mainstay of treatment for patients with AIS 5 BSI who present to hospital with hemodynamic instability. However, SAE might be a feasible alternative for patients with AIS 3/4 injuries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, we show that any finitely generated gyrovector subspace in the Möbius gyrovector space coincides with the intersection of the vector subspace generated by the same generators and the Möbius ball. As an application, we present a notion of orthogonal gyrodecomposition and clarify the relationship with the orthogonal decomposition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: In this paper we describe all isometries on the special orthogonal group. As an application we give a form of spectrally multiplicative map on the special orthogonal group. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Introduction: Few studies are available on the clinical characteristics of patients using emergency medical transports in Japan. In this study, we aimed to investigate reasons for emergency medical transports and their relation to clinical severity. Methods: We conducted a 3-year population-based observational study of patients transported by ambulance to emergency departments (ED) in the capital of Japan, Tokyo, which has a population of about 13 million. Demographic data, reasons for transport, and the severity of initial assessment at ED were recorded. Logistic regression was used to determine the odds of the clinical severity of each reason for transport. Results: The number of emergency medical transports in the three-year study period was 1,832,637. Mean age was 53±26. Males were 976,142 (53%). Overall, 92% of all transported patients were in a mild or moderate medical state and patients with the 17 most frequent reasons for transport occupied 82% (1,506,017) of all transports. Pain was the most frequent reason for transport, followed by traffic accident. Considering all the patients and their reasons for transport, patients whose reason was pain or a traffic accident (29% of all patients) were in a relatively mild state compared with patients with other reasons for transport. Patients in an altered mental state in the prehospital setting (6.8% of all patients) were in a more severe medical state than other patients. Conclusions: In Tokyo, Japan, 92% of transported patients were in a mild or moderate medical state. In particular, most patients from traffic accidents were in a mild state, even though traffic accidents were the second most frequent reason for transport. Patients in an altered mental state were most likely to be in a severe medical state. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Optimal acceptable time intervals from collapse to bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) for neurologically favorable outcome among adults with witnessed out-of-hospital cardiopulmonary arrest (CPA) have been unclear. Our aim was to assess the optimal acceptable thresholds of the time intervals of CPR for neurologically favorable outcome and survival using a recursive partitioning model. Methods and Findings: From January 1, 2005 through December 31, 2009, we conducted a prospective population-based observational study across Japan involving consecutive out-of-hospital CPA patients (N = 69,648) who received a witnessed bystander CPR. Of 69,648 patients, 34,605 were assigned to the derivation data set and 35,043 to the validation data set. Time factors associated with better outcomes: the better outcomes were survival and neurologically favorable outcome at one month, defined as category one (good cerebral performance) or two (moderate cerebral disability) of the cerebral performance categories. Based on the recursive partitioning model from the derivation dataset (n = 34,605) to predict the neurologically favorable outcome at one month, 5 min threshold was the acceptable time interval from collapse to CPR initiation; 11 min from collapse to ambulance arrival; 18 min from collapse to return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC); and 19 min from collapse to hospital arrival. Among the validation dataset (n = 35,043), 209/2,292 (9.1%) in all patients with the acceptable time intervals and 1,388/2,706 (52.1%) in the subgroup with the acceptable time intervals and pre-hospital ROSC showed neurologically favorable outcome. Conclusions: Initiation of CPR should be within 5 min for obtaining neurologically favorable outcome among adults with witnessed out-of-hospital CPA. Patients with the acceptable time intervals of bystander CPR and pre-hospital ROSC within 18 min could have 50% chance of neurologically favorable outcome. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract  Guidelines recommend obtaining blood cultures for all patients admitted with pneumonia. However, recent American studies have reported the low impact of these cultures on antibiotic therapy. Our aim was to investigate the incidence of bacteremia and change of therapy in admitted pneumonia patients from whom blood cultures were obtained in the emergency department (ED). A retrospective, observational, cohort study was conducted on consecutive patients (age ≥12 years) with pneumonia hospitalized through the ED between January 1 and December 31, 2006, in an urban teaching hospital in Japan. Data were collected on antibiotic sensitivities, empirical antibiotics, and changes of antibiotic management. Blood cultures were classified as positive, negative, or contaminant, based on previously established criteria. Out of 164 consecutive cases, blood cultures were positive in 6 patients (3.7%; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.8%–6.6%), contaminated in 6 (3.7%), and negative in 152 (92.7%). Of the 6 bacteremic patients, 2 cases were likely to have been caused by concomitant diseases. Blood culture results altered therapy for 4 patients (2.4% of 164; 95% CI, 0.7%–6.1%), of whom 2 patients (1.2%; 95% CI, 0.1%–4.3%) had their coverage narrowed, 1 patient (0.6%; 95% CI, 0.0%–3.4%) had coverage broadened, and 1 patient had altered therapy before the drug sensitivities were reported. Considering cost and workload, the overall total annual cost was €758 631 (€107 = 1 $US in June 2008). Blood cultures could identify organisms in only a few patients with pneumonia and rarely altered antibiotic management even in patients with positive cultures. It may not be necessary to obtain blood cultures for patients admitted with pneumonia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Background: Complete neurological recovery is of great importance to survivors of cardiac arrest. Few studies have explored predictors of good cerebral performance outcomes among these. Methods: We analyzed data from the SOS-KANTO study, a prospective, multi-center, observational study on patients who had out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. We included patients with Glasgow-Pittsburgh cerebral performance categories (GP-CPC) 1 (good cerebral performance) and 2 (moderate cerebral disability) at 30 days after cardiac arrest. Results: Among 122 eligible patients, 85 (70%) with GP-CPC 1 and 37 (30%) with GP-CPC 2 outcomes were analyzed. More patients with GP-CPC 1 outcome (27%) received conventional cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) than those with GP-CPC 2 outcome (5%). Proportions for receiving cardiac-only resuscitation were not different between the two groups. Based on a multiple logistic-regression model constructed using age and significant variables from bivariate analyses, significant factors for GP-CPC 1 outcome included: conventional bystander CPR compared to no bystander resuscitation with an odds ratio of 5.7 (95% CI, 1.1–30.4); positive pupillary reflex at the time of ED arrival with an odds ratio of 13.7 (95% CI, 3.5–53.7); spontaneous respiration at ED arrival with an odds ratio of 5.98 (95% CI, 1.6–23.0); and cardiac cause of initial arrest with an odds ratio of 5.9 (95% CI, 1.4–25.0). Conclusions: Survivors of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest with recovery to good cerebral performance were more likely to have cardiac cause of arrest and show positive pupillary reflex and spontaneous respiration at ED arrival. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Summary: A prospective payment system based on diagnosis procedure combination (DPC/PPS) was introduced to acute care hospitals in Japan in April 2003. In order to increase hospital income, hospitals must shorten the average length of stay (ALOS) and increase the number of patients. We constructed a simulation program for evaluating the relationships among ALOS, bed occupation rate (BOR) and hospital income of hospitals in which DPC/PPS has been introduced. This program can precisely evaluate the hospital income by regulating the ALOS and the number of patients for each DPC. By using this program, it is possible to predict the optimum ALOS and optimum number of inpatients for each DPC in order to increase hospital income. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

For traumatic cardiac arrest (TCA), the effect of prehospital epinephrine administration was unclear. The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between prehospital epinephrine administration and survival in patients with TCA caused by traffic collisions. We conducted a nationwide, prospective, population-based observational study involving patients who experienced out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) by using the All-Japan Utstein Registry. Blunt trauma patients with TCA who received prehospital epinephrine were compared with those who did not receive prehospital epinephrine. The primary outcome was 1-month survival of patients. The secondary outcome was prehospital return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC). A total of 5,204 patients with TCA were analyzed. Of those, 758 patients (14.6%) received prehospital epinephrine (Epinephrine group), whereas the remaining 4,446 patients (85.4%) did not receive prehospital epinephrine (No epinephrine group). Eleven (1.5%) and 41 (0.9%) patients in the Epinephrine and No epinephrine groups, respectively, survived for 1 month. In addition, 74 (9.8%) and 40 (0.9%) patients achieved prehospital ROSC in the Epinephrine and No epinephrine groups, respectively. In multivariable logistic regression models, prehospital epinephrine administration was not associated with 1-month survival (odds ratio [OR] 1.495, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.758 to 2.946) and was associated with prehospital ROSC (OR 3.784, 95% CI 2.102 to 6.812). A propensity score-matched analysis showed similar results for 1-month survival (OR 2.363, 95% CI 0.606 to 9,223) and prehospital ROSC (OR 6.870, 95% CI 3.326 to 14.192). Prehospital epinephrine administration in patients with TCA was not associated with 1-month survival, but was beneficial in regard to prehospital ROSC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Accurate and early identification of infection sites might help to drive crucial decisions regarding the treatment of sepsis. We aimed to determine the clinical and etiological features of infection according to sites among patients with severe sepsis in Japan. Methods: This secondary analysis of a multicenter, prospective cohort study included 59 intensive care units (ICU) and proceeded between January 2016 and March 2017. The study cohort comprised 1184 adults (≥ 16 years) who were admitted to an ICU with severe sepsis and septic shock diagnosed according to the sepsis-2 criteria. Sites of infection diagnosed by physicians in charge at the time of arrival comprised the lung, abdomen, urinary tract, soft tissue, bloodstream, central nervous system (CNS), and undifferentiated infections. The primary outcome was in-hospital mortality. Results: The most common sites of infection were the lungs (31.0%), followed by intra-abdominal sites (26.3%), the urinary tract (18.4%), and soft tissue (10.9%). The characteristics of the patients with severe sepsis across seven major suspected infection sites were heterogeneous. Septic shock was more frequent among patients with intra-abdominal (72.2%) and urinary tract (70.2%) infections than other sites. The in-hospital mortality rate due to severe sepsis and septic shock of a pooled sample was 23.4% (range, 11.9% [urinary tract infection] to 47.6% [CNS infection]). After adjusting for clinical background, sepsis severity, and stratification according to the presence or absence of shock, variations in hospital mortality across seven major sites of infection remained essentially unchanged from those for crude in-hospital mortality; adjusted in-hospital mortality rates ranged from 7.7% (95%CI, − 0.3 to 15.8) for urinary tract infection without shock to 58.3% (95%CI, 21.0–95.7) for CNS infection with shock in a generalized estimating equation model. Intra-abdominal and urinary tract infections were statistically associated with less in-hospital mortality than pneumonia. Infections of the CNS were statistically associated with higher in-hospital mortality rates than pneumonia in a logistic regression model, but not in the generalized estimating equation model. Conclusions: In-hospital mortality and clinical features of patients with severe sepsis and septic shock were heterogeneous according to sites of infection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

B Learning Objectives: b Children frequently receive whole-body computed tomography (WBCT) as evidence-based trauma care from studies of adults because pediatrics studies was scarce. Exclusion criteria included patients with pre-hospital cardiopulmonary arrest and non-blunt trauma such as penetrating injury, burns, or unknown trauma mechanisms. [Extracted from the article]

Limited information exists regarding the effect of off-hour admission among critically ill children. To evaluate whether children admitted to intensive care units (ICUs) in off-hour have worse outcomes, we conducted a cohort study in 2013–2018 in a multicenter registry in Japan. Pediatric (age < 16 years) unplanned ICU admissions were divided into regular-hour (daytime on business days) or off-hour (others). Mortality and changes in the functional score at discharge from the unit were compared between the two groups. We established multivariate logistic regression models to examine the independent association between off-hour admission and outcomes. Due to the small number of outcomes, two different models were used. There were 2512 admissions, including 757 for regular-hour and 1745 for off-hour. Mortality rates were 2.4% (18/757) and 1.9% (34/1745) in regular-hour and off-hour admissions, respectively. There was no significant association between off-hour admission and mortality both in model 1 adjusting for age, sex, and Pediatric Index of Mortality 2 (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 0.89, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.46–1.72) and in model 2 adjusting for propensity score predicting off-hour admission (aOR 1.05, 95% CI 0.57–1.91). In addition, off-hour admission did not show an independent association with deterioration of functional score. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous studies have shown inconsistent prognostic accuracy for mortality with both quick sequential organ failure assessment (qSOFA) and the systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS) criteria. We aimed to validate the accuracy of qSOFA and the SIRS criteria for predicting in-hospital mortality in patients with suspected infection in the emergency department. A prospective study was conducted including participants with suspected infection who were hospitalised or died in 34 emergency departments in Japan. Prognostic accuracy of qSOFA and SIRS criteria for in-hospital mortality was assessed by the area under the receiver operating characteristic (AUROC) curve. Of the 1060 participants, 402 (37.9%) and 915 (86.3%) had qSOFA ≥ 2 and SIRS criteria ≥ 2 (given thresholds), respectively, and there were 157 (14.8%) in-hospital deaths. Greater accuracy for in-hospital mortality was shown with qSOFA than with the SIRS criteria (AUROC: 0.64 versus 0.52, difference + 0.13, 95% CI [+ 0.07, + 0.18]). Sensitivity and specificity for predicting in-hospital mortality at the given thresholds were 0.55 and 0.65 based on qSOFA and 0.88 and 0.14 based on SIRS criteria, respectively. To predict in-hospital mortality in patients visiting to the emergency department with suspected infection, qSOFA was demonstrated to be modestly more accurate than the SIRS criteria albeit insufficiently sensitive. Clinical Trial Registration: The study was pre-registered in the University Hospital Medical Information Network Clinical Trials Registry (UMIN000027258). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS) reportedly has a low performance for distinguishing infection from non-infection. We explored the distribution of the patients diagnosed by SIRS (SIRS patients) or a quick sequential organ failure assessment (qSOFA) (qSOFA patients) and confirmed the performance of the both for predicting ultimate infection after hospital admission. We retrospectively analyzed the data from a multicenter prospective study. When emergency physicians suspected infection, SIRS or the qSOFA were applied. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curves (AUC) was used to assess the performance of the SIRS and qSOFA for predicting established infection. A total of 1,045 patients were eligible for this study. The SIRS patients accounted for 91.6% of qSOFA patients and they showed a higher rate of final infection than that of non-SIRS patients irrespective of the qSOFA diagnosis. The AUCs for predicting infection with SIRS and a qSOFA were 0.647 and 0.582, respectively. The SIRS significantly predicted an ultimate infection (AUC, 0.675; p = 0.018) in patients who met the SIRS and qSOFA simultaneously. In conclusion, the SIRS patients included almost all qSOFA patients. SIRS showed a better performance for predicting infection for qSOFA in those who met both definitions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Chest computed tomography findings are helpful for understanding the pathophysiology of severe acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). However, there is no large, multicenter, chest computed tomography registry for patients requiring veno-venous extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (V-V ECMO). The aim of this study was to describe chest computed tomography findings at V-V ECMO initiation and to evaluate the association between the findings and outcomes in severe ARDS. Methods: This multicenter, retrospective cohort study enrolled patients with severe ARDS on V-V ECMO, who were admitted to the intensive care units of 24 hospitals in Japan between January 1, 2012, and December 31, 2022. Results: The primary outcome was 90-day in-hospital mortality. The secondary outcomes were the successful liberation from V-V ECMO and the values of static lung compliance. Among the 697 registry patients, of the 582 patients who underwent chest computed tomography at V-V ECMO initiation, 394 survived and 188 died. Multivariate Cox regression showed that traction bronchiectasis and subcutaneous emphysema increased the risk of 90-day in-hospital mortality (hazard ratio [95% confidence interval] 1.77 [1.19–2.63], p = 0.005 and 1.97 [1.02–3.79], p = 0.044, respectively). The presence of traction bronchiectasis was also associated with decreased successful liberation from V-V ECMO (odds ratio: 0.27 [0.14–0.52], p < 0.001). Lower static lung compliance was associated with some chest computed tomography findings related to changes outside of pulmonary opacity, but not with the findings related to pulmonary opacity. Conclusions: Traction bronchiectasis and subcutaneous emphysema increased the risk of 90-day in-hospital mortality in patients with severe ARDS who required V-V ECMO. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Abdominal compartment syndrome (ACS) after blunt abdominal trauma is a rare complication that requires early recognition and subsequent surgical intervention for optimal outcome. We aimed to investigate how differences in injured abdominal organs affect ACS development in patients with severe blunt abdominal trauma. Methods: This nested case-control study used a nationwide registry of trauma patients, namely, the Japan Trauma Data Bank (JTDB), and only included patients aged ≥ 18 years with blunt severe abdominal trauma, defined as an AIS score of abdomen ≥ 3, sustained between 2004 and 2017. Patients without ACS were used as control subjects and identified using propensity score (PS) matching. Characteristics and outcomes between patients with and without ACS were compared and logistic regression was used to identify specific risk factors for ACS. Results: Among 294,274 patients in the JTDB, 11,220 were eligible for inclusion before PS matching, and 150 (1.3%) developed ACS after trauma. PS matching led to the inclusion of 131 and 655 patients with and without ACS, respectively. Compared to controls, patients with ACS had higher number of injured organs in the abdomen and displayed a greater frequency of vascular and pancreatic injuries, need for blood transfusion, and disseminated intravascular coagulopathy, a complication of ACS. In-hospital mortality was higher in patients with ACS than those without ACS (51.1% vs. 26.0%, p < 0.01). Logistic regression analysis revealed that a higher number of injured organs in the abdomen [odds ratio (OR) (95% confidence interval [CI]): 1.76 (1.23–2.53)] and pancreatic injury [OR (95% CI): 1.53 (1.03–2.27)] were independently associated with ACS. Conclusions: Greater number of injured organs in abdomen and pancreatic injury are independent risk factors for the development of ACS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: It is clinically important to predict difficulty in short-term liberation from veno-venous extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (V-V ECMO) in patients with severe acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) at the time of initiation of the support. The aim of this study was to identify the characteristics of pulmonary opacities on chest CT that is associated with difficulty in short-term liberation from V-V ECMO (< 14 days). Methods: This multicenter retrospective study was conducted in adult patients initiated on V-V ECMO for severe ARDS between January 2014 and June 2022. The pulmonary opacities on CT at the time of initiation of the ECMO support were evaluated in a blinded manner, focusing on the following three characteristics of the opacities: (1) their distribution (focal/diffuse on the dorso-ventral axis or unilateral/bilateral on the left-right axis); (2) their intensity (pure ground glass/pure consolidation/mixed pattern); and (3) the degree of fibroproliferation (signs of traction bronchiectasis or reticular opacities). Results: Among the 153 patients, 72 (47%) were successfully liberated from ECMO in the short term, while short-term liberation failed in the remaining 81 (53%) patients. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that the presence of mixed-pattern pulmonary opacities and signs of traction bronchiectasis, but not the distribution of the opacities, were independently associated with difficulty in short-term liberation (OR [95% CI]; 4.8 [1.4–16.5] and 3.9 [1.4–11.2], respectively). Conclusions: The presence of a mixed pattern of the pulmonary opacities and signs of traction bronchiectasis on the chest CT were independently associated with difficulty in short-term liberation from V-V ECMO in severe ARDS patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The development of disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) in patients with sepsis has been repeatedly confirmed as a factor associated with poor prognosis. Anticoagulant therapy has been expected to improve sepsis patient outcomes, whereas no randomized controlled trials have demonstrated the survival benefit of anticoagulant therapies in non-specific overall sepsis. Patient selection based on the component of "high disease severity" in addition to "sepsis with DIC" has recently proved important in identifying appropriate targets for anticoagulant therapy. The aims of this study were to characterize "severe" sepsis DIC patients and to identify the patient population benefiting from anticoagulant therapy. Methods: This retrospective sub-analysis of a prospective multicenter study included 1,178 adult patients with severe sepsis from 59 intensive care units in Japan from January 2016 to March 2017. We examined the association of patient outcomes, including organ dysfunction and in-hospital mortality, with the DIC score and prothrombin time-international normalized ratio (PT-INR), one of the components of the DIC score, using multivariable regression models including the cross-product term between these indicators. Multivariate Cox proportional hazard regression analysis with non-linear restricted cubic spline including a three-way interaction term (anticoagulant therapy × the DIC score × PT-INR) was also performed. Anticoagulant therapy was defined as the administration of antithrombin, recombinant human thrombomodulin, or their combination. Results: In total, we analyzed 1013 patients. The regression model showed that organ dysfunction and in-hospital mortality deteriorated with higher PT-INR values in the range of < 1.5 and that this trend was more pronounced with higher DIC scores. Three-way interaction analysis demonstrated that anticoagulant therapy was associated with better survival outcome in patients with a high DIC score and high PT-INR. Furthermore, we identified a DIC score ≥ 5 and PT-INR ≥ 1.5 as the clinical threshold for identification of optimal targets for anticoagulant therapy. Conclusions: The combined use of the DIC score and PT-INR helps in selecting the optimal patient population for anticoagulant therapy in sepsis-induced DIC. The results obtained from this study will provide valuable information regarding the study design of randomized controlled trials examining the effects of anticoagulant therapy for sepsis. Trial registration: UMIN-CTR, UMIN000019742. Registered on November 16, 2015. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article offers information on the discovery of spinal dural arteriovenous fistula (SDAVF) in a 66-year-old man associated with sick sinus syndrome. It mentions the used of three-dimensional neck computed tomography (CT) angiography which showed the SDAVF in the area of atlas-occipital bone articulation. It adds that after three weeks of pain symptoms, the patient undergo endovascular embolization.

Background: A substantial number of sepsis patients require specialized care, including multidisciplinary care, close monitoring, and artificial organ support in the intensive care unit (ICU). However, the efficacy of ICU management on clinical outcomes remains insufficiently researched. Therefore, we tested the hypothesis that ICU admission would increase the survival rate among sepsis patients. Methods: We conducted a retrospective study using the nationwide medical claims database of sepsis patients in Japan from 2010 to 2017 with propensity score matching to adjust for baseline imbalances. Patients aged over 20 years, with a combined diagnosis of presumed serious infection and organ failure, were included in this study. The primary outcome studied was the in-hospital mortality among non-ICU and ICU patients. In addition to propensity score matching, we performed a multivariable logistic regression analysis for the primary outcome. As the treatment policy was not extracted from the database, we performed sensitivity analyses to determine mortality differences in adults (20 ≤ age ≤ 64), independent patients, patients without malignant tumors, based on the assumption that treatment intensity is likely to increase in those population. Results: Among 1,167,901 sepsis patients (974,289 in non-ICU and 193,612 in ICU settings), the unadjusted in-hospital mortality was 22.5% among non-ICU patients and 26.2% among ICU patients (3.7% [95% CI 3.5–3.9]). After propensity score matching, the in-hospital mortality was 29.2% among non-ICU patients and 25.8% among ICU patients (- 3.4% [95% CI - 3.7 to - 3.1]). In-hospital mortality with a multivariable regression analysis (- 5.0% [95% CI - 5.2 to - 4.8]) was comparable with the results of the propensity score matching analysis. In the sensitivity analyses, the mortality differences between non-ICU and ICU in adults, independent patients, and patients without malignant tumors were - 2.7% [95% CI - 3.3 to - 2.2], - 5.8% [95% CI - 6.4 to - 5.2], and - 1.3% [95% CI - 1.7 to - 1.0], respectively. Conclusions: Herein, using the nationwide medical claims database, we demonstrated that ICU admission was potentially associated with decreasing in-hospital mortality among sepsis patients. Further investigations are warranted to validate these results and elucidate the mechanisms favoring ICU management on clinical outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The appropriate duration of antibiotic treatment in patients with bacterial sepsis remains unclear. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the association of a shorter course of antibiotics on 28-day mortality in comparison with a longer course using a national database in Japan. Methods: We conducted a post hoc analysis from the retrospective observational study of patients with sepsis using a Japanese claims database from 2010 to 2017. The patient dataset was divided into short-course (≤ 7 days) and long-course (≥ 8 days) groups according to the duration of initial antibiotic administration. Subsequently, propensity score matching was performed to adjust the baseline imbalance between the two groups. The primary outcome was 28-day mortality. The secondary outcomes were re-initiated antibiotics at 3 and 7 days, during hospitalization, administration period, antibiotic-free days, and medical cost. Results: After propensity score matching, 448,146 pairs were analyzed. The 28-day mortality was significantly lower in the short-course group (hazard ratio, 0.94; 95% CI, 0.92–0.95; P < 0.001), while the occurrence of re-initiated antibiotics at 3 and 7 days and during hospitalization were significantly higher in the short-course group (P < 0.001). Antibiotic-free days (median [IQR]) were significantly shorter in the long-course group (21 days [17 days, 23 days] vs. 17 days [14 days, 19 days], P < 0.001), and short-course administration contributed to a decrease in medical costs (coefficient $-212, 95% CI; − 223 to − 201, P < 0.001). Subgroup analyses showed a significant decrease in the 28-day mortality of the patients in the short-course group in patients of male sex (hazard ratio: 0.91, 95% CI; 0.89–0.93), community-onset sepsis (hazard ratio; 0.95, 95% CI; 0.93–0.98), abdominal infection (hazard ratio; 0.92, 95% CI; 0.88–0.97) and heart infection (hazard ratio; 0.74, 95% CI; 0.61–0.90), while a significant increase was observed in patients with non-community-onset sepsis (hazard ratio; 1.09, 95% CI; 1.06–1.12). Conclusions: The 28-day mortality was significantly lower in the short-course group, even though there was a higher rate of re-initiated antibiotics in the short course. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Sepsis is the leading cause of death worldwide. Although the mortality of sepsis patients has been decreasing over the past decade, the trend of medical costs and cost-effectiveness for sepsis treatment remains insufficiently determined. Methods: We conducted a retrospective study using the nationwide medical claims database of sepsis patients in Japan between 2010 and 2017. After selecting sepsis patients with a combined diagnosis of presumed serious infection and organ failure, patients over the age of 20 were included in this study. We investigated the annual trend of medical costs during the study period. The primary outcome was the annual trend of the effective cost per survivor, calculated from the gross medical cost and number of survivors per year. Subsequently, we performed subgroup and multiple regression analyses to evaluate the association between the annual trend and medical costs. Results: Among 50,490,128 adult patients with claims, a total of 1,276,678 patients with sepsis were selected from the database. Yearly gross medical costs to treat sepsis gradually increased over the decade from $3.04 billion in 2010 to $4.38 billion in 2017, whereas the total medical cost per hospitalization declined (rate = − $1075/year, p < 0.0001). While the survival rate of sepsis patients improved during the study period, the effective cost per survivor significantly decreased (rate = − $1806/year [95% CI − $2432 to − $1179], p = 0.001). In the subgroup analysis, the trend of decreasing medical cost per hospitalization remained consistent among the subpopulation of age, sex, and site of infection. After adjusting for age, sex (male), number of chronic diseases, site of infection, intensive care unit (ICU) admission, surgery, and length of hospital stay, the admission year was significantly associated with reduced medical costs. Conclusions: We demonstrated an improvement in annual cost-effectiveness in patients with sepsis between 2010 and 2017. The annual trend of reduced costs was consistent after adjustment with the confounders altering hospital expenses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) is one of the major organ dysfunctions associated with sepsis. This retrospective secondary analysis comprised data from a prospective multicenter study to investigate the age-related differences in the survival benefit of anticoagulant therapy in sepsis according to the DIC diagnostic criteria. Adult patients with severe sepsis based on the Sepsis-2 criteria were enrolled and divided into the following groups: (1) anticoagulant group (patients who received anticoagulant therapy) and (2) non-anticoagulant group (patients who did not receive anticoagulant therapy). Patients in the former group were administered antithrombin, recombinant human thrombomodulin, or their combination. The increases in the risk of hospital mortality were suppressed in the high-DIC-score patients aged 60–70 years receiving anticoagulant therapy. No favorable association of anti-coagulant therapy with hospital mortality was observed in patients aged 50 years and 80 years. Furthermore, anticoagulant therapy in the lower-DIC-score range increased the risk of hospital mortality in patients aged 50–60 years. In conclusion, anticoagulant therapy was associated with decreased hospital mortality according to a higher DIC score in septic patients aged 60–70 years. Anticoagulant therapy, however, was not associated with a better outcome in relatively younger and older patients with sepsis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Prehospital telephone triage stratifies patients into five categories, "need immediate hospital visit by ambulance," "need to visit a hospital within 1 hour," "need to visit a hospital within 6 hours," "need to visit a hospital within 24 hours," and "do not need a hospital visit" in Japan. However, studies on whether present and past histories cause undertriage are limited in patients triaged as need an early hospital visit. We investigated factors associated with undertriage by comparing patient assessed to be appropriately triaged with those assessed undertriaged.Methods: We included all patients classified by telephone triage as need to visit a hospital within 1 h and 6 h who used a single after-hours house call (AHHC) medical service in Tokyo, Japan, between November 1, 2019, and November 31, 2020. After home consultation, AHHC doctors classified patients as grade 1 (treatable with over-the-counter medications), 2 (requires hospital or clinic visit), or 3 (requires ambulance transportation). Patients classified as grade 2 and 3 were defined as appropriately triaged and undertriaged, respectively.Results: We identified 10,742 eligible patients triaged as need to visit a hospital within 1 h and 6 h, including 10,479 (97.6%) appropriately triaged and 263 (2.4%) undertriaged patients. Multivariable logistic regression analyses revealed patients aged 16-64, 65-74, and ≥ 75 years (adjusted odds ratio [OR], 2.40 [95% confidence interval {CI} 1.71-3.36], 8.57 [95% CI 4.83-15.2], and 14.9 [95% CI 9.65-23.0], respectively; reference patients aged < 15 years); those with diabetes mellitus (2.31 [95% CI 1.25-4.26]); those with dementia (2.32 [95% CI 1.05-5.10]); and those with a history of cerebral infarction (1.98 [95% CI 1.01-3.87]) as more likely to be undertriaged.Conclusions: We found that older adults and patients with diabetes mellitus, dementia, or a history of cerebral infarction were at risk of undertriage in patients triaged as need to visit a hospital within 1 h and 6 h, but further studies are needed to validate these findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Dexmedetomidine is an alpha 2-adrenergic receptor agonist. Apart from its sedative effects, dexmedetomidine can potentially reduce mortality through its anti-inflammatory effect. However, the impact of dexmedetomidine on in-hospital outcomes of patients with severe burns remains unclear. Therefore, we aimed to elucidate the association between dexmedetomidine use and mortality in mechanically ventilated patients with severe burns, using a Japanese nationwide database of in-hospital patients.Methods: We included adults with severe burns (burn index ≥ 10) who were registered in the Japanese Diagnosis Procedure Combination national inpatient database from 2010 to 2018, started mechanical ventilation within 3 days of admission, and received any sedative drug (dexmedetomidine, midazolam, or propofol). One-to-one propensity score matching was performed between patients who received dexmedetomidine on the day of mechanical ventilation initiation (dexmedetomidine group) and those who did not receive dexmedetomidine (control group). The primary outcome was all-cause 30-day in-hospital mortality. Secondary outcomes were length of hospital stay and duration of mechanical ventilation in patients and survivors.Results: Eligible patients (n = 1888) were classified into the dexmedetomidine group (n = 371) or the control group (n = 1517). After one-to-one propensity score matching, we compared 329 patients from both groups. No significant difference was observed in the 30-day mortality between patients in the dexmedetomidine and control groups (22.8% vs. 22.5%, respectively; odds ratio, 1.02; 95% confidence interval, 0.71-1.46). Moreover, there were no significant differences between patients in the dexmedetomidine and control groups in terms of the length of hospital stay or the duration of mechanical ventilation.Conclusions: We found no significant association between dexmedetomidine use and in-hospital outcomes (mortality, length of hospital stay, and length of mechanical ventilation) in mechanically ventilated patients with severe burns. Dexmedetomidine use may not improve the aforementioned outcomes; therefore, its selection should be based on the patient's general condition and the target level of sedation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Post-trauma patients are at great risk of pulmonary embolism (PE), however, data assessing specific risk factors for post-traumatic PE are scarce. This was a nested case–control study using the Japan Trauma Data Bank between 2004 and 2017. We enrolled patients aged ≥ 16 years, Injury Severity Score ≥ 9, and length of hospital stay ≥ 2 days, with PE and without PE, using propensity score matching. We conducted logistic regression analyses to examine risk factors for PE. We included 719 patients with PE and 3595 patients without PE. Of these patients, 1864 [43.2%] were male, and their median Interquartile Range (IQR) age was 73 [55–84] years. The major mechanism of injury was blunt (4282 [99.3%]). Median [IQR] Injury Severity Score (ISS) was 10 [9–18]. In the multivariate analysis, the variables spinal injury [odds ratio (OR), 1.40 (1.03–1.89)]; long bone open fracture in upper extremity and lower extremity [OR, 1.51 (1.06–2.15) and OR, 3.69 (2.89–4.71), respectively]; central vein catheter [OR, 2.17 (1.44–3.27)]; and any surgery [OR, 4.48 (3.46–5.81)] were independently associated with PE. Spinal injury, long bone open fracture in extremities, central vein catheter placement, and any surgery were risk factors for post-traumatic PE. Prompt initiation of prophylaxis is needed for patients with such trauma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to assess the value of quick sequential organ failure assessment (qSOFA) combined with other risk factors in predicting in-hospital mortality in patients presenting to the emergency department with suspected infection. This post-hoc analysis of a prospective multicenter study dataset included 34 emergency departments across Japan (December 2017 to February 2018). We included adult patients (age ≥16 years) who presented to the emergency department with suspected infection. qSOFA was calculated and recorded by senior emergency physicians when they suspected an infection. Different types of sepsis-related risk factors (demographic, functional, and laboratory values) were chosen from prior studies. A logistic regression model was used to assess the predictive value of qSOFA for in-hospital mortality in models based on the following combination of predictors: 1) qSOFA-Only; 2) qSOFA+Age; 3) qSOFA+Clinical Frailty Scale (CFS); 4) qSOFA+Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI); 5) qSOFA+lactate levels; 6) qSOFA+Age+CCI+CFS+lactate levels. We calculated the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) and other key clinical statistics at Youden's index, where the sum of sensitivity and specificity is maximized. Following prior literature, an AUC >0.9 was deemed to indicate high accuracy; 0.7–0.9, moderate accuracy; 0.5–0.7, low accuracy; and 0.5, a chance result. Of the 951 patients included in the analysis, 151 (15.9%) died during hospitalization. The AUC for predicting in-hospital mortality was 0.627 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.580−0.673) for the qSOFA-Only model. Addition of other variables only marginally improved the model's AUC; the model that included all potentially relevant variables yielded an AUC of only 0.730 (95% CI: 0.687–0.774). Other key statistic values were similar among all models, with sensitivity and specificity of 0.55−0.65 and 0.60−0.75, respectively. In this post-hoc data analysis from a prospective multicenter study based in Japan, combining qSOFA with other sepsis-related risk factors only marginally improved the model's predictive value. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The impact of infection on the prognosis of trauma patients according to severity remains unclear. We assessed the impact of infection complications on in-hospital mortality among patients with trauma according to severity. This retrospective cohort study used a nationwide registry of trauma patients. Patients aged ≥ 18 years with blunt or penetrating trauma who were admitted to intensive care units or general wards between 2004 and 2017 were included. We compared the baseline characteristics and outcomes between patients with and without infection and conducted a multivariable logistic regression analysis to investigate the impact of infection on in-hospital mortality according to trauma severity, which was classified as mild [Injury Severity Score (ISS) < 15], moderate (ISS 15–29), or severe (ISS ≥ 30). Among the 150,948 patients in this study, 10,338 (6.8%) developed infections. Patients with infection had greater in-hospital mortality than patients without infection [1085 (10.5%) vs. 2898 (2.1%), p < 0.01]. After adjusting for clinical characteristics, in-hospital mortality differed between trauma patients with and without infection according to trauma severity [17.1% (95% CI 15.2–18.9%) vs. 2.9% (95% CI 2.7–3.1%), p < 0.01, in patients with mild trauma; 14.8% (95% CI 13.3–16.3%) vs. 8.4% (95% CI 7.9–8.8%), p < 0.01, in patients with moderate trauma; and 13.5% (95% CI 11.2–15.7%) vs. 13.7% (95% CI 12.4–14.9%), p = 0.86, in patients with severe trauma]. In conclusion, the effect of infection complications in patients with trauma on in-hospital mortality differs by trauma severity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Trauma patients die from massive bleeding due to disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) with a fibrinolytic phenotype in the early phase, which transforms to DIC with a thrombotic phenotype in the late phase of trauma, contributing to the development of multiple organ dysfunction syndrome (MODS) and a consequently poor outcome. This is a sub-analysis of a multicenter prospective descriptive cross-sectional study on DIC to evaluate the effect of a DIC diagnosis on the survival probability and predictive performance of DIC scores for massive transfusion, MODS, and hospital death in severely injured trauma patients. A DIC diagnosis on admission was associated with a lower survival probability (Log Rank P < 0.001), higher frequency of massive transfusion and MODS and a higher mortality rate than no such diagnosis. The DIC scores at 0 and 3 h significantly predicted massive transfusion, MODS, and hospital death. Markers of thrombin and plasmin generation and fibrinolysis inhibition also showed a good predictive ability for these three items. In conclusion, a DIC diagnosis on admission was associated with a low survival probability. DIC scores obtained immediately after trauma predicted a poor prognosis of severely injured trauma patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Information on hyperoxemia among patients with trauma has been limited, other than traumatic brain injuries. This study aimed to elucidate whether hyperoxemia during resuscitation of patients with trauma was associated with unfavorable outcomes. Methods: A post hoc analysis of a prospective observational study was carried out at 39 tertiary hospitals in 2016–2018 in adult patients with trauma and injury severity score (ISS) of > 15. Hyperoxemia during resuscitation was defined as PaO2 of ≥ 300 mmHg on hospital arrival and/or 3 h after arrival. Intensive care unit (ICU)-free days were compared between patients with and without hyperoxemia. An inverse probability of treatment weighting (IPW) analysis was conducted to adjust patient characteristics including age, injury mechanism, comorbidities, vital signs on presentation, chest injury severity, and ISS. Analyses were stratified with intubation status at the emergency department (ED). The association between biomarkers and ICU length of stay were then analyzed with multivariate models. Results: Among 295 severely injured trauma patients registered, 240 were eligible for analysis. Patients in the hyperoxemia group (n = 58) had shorter ICU-free days than those in the non-hyperoxemia group [17 (10–21) vs 23 (16–26), p < 0.001]. IPW analysis revealed the association between hyperoxemia and prolonged ICU stay among patients not intubated at the ED [ICU-free days = 16 (12–22) vs 23 (19–26), p = 0.004], but not among those intubated at the ED [18 (9–20) vs 15 (8–23), p = 0.777]. In the hyperoxemia group, high inflammatory markers such as soluble RAGE and HMGB-1, as well as low lung-protective proteins such as surfactant protein D and Clara cell secretory protein, were associated with prolonged ICU stay. Conclusions: Hyperoxemia until 3 h after hospital arrival was associated with prolonged ICU stay among severely injured trauma patients not intubated at the ED. Trial registration: UMIN-CTR, UMIN000019588. Registered on November 15, 2015. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Fat embolism syndrome (FES) is a rare syndrome resulting from a fat embolism, which is defined by the presence of fat globules in the pulmonary microcirculation; it is associated with a wide range of symptoms.Research Question: What are the specific unknown risk factors for FES after we have controlled for basic characteristics and patient's severity?Study Design and Methods: This was a nested case-control study that used the Japan Trauma Data Bank database from 2004 and 2017. We included patients with FES and identified patients without FES as control subjects using a propensity score matching. The primary outcome was the presence of FES during a hospital stay.Results: There were 209 (0.1%) patients with FES after trauma; they were compared with 2,090 matched patients from 168,835 candidates for this study. Patients with FES had long bone and open fractures in their extremities more frequently than those without FES. Regarding treatments, patients with FES received bone reduction and fixation more than those without FES. Among patients who received bone reduction and fixation, time to operation was not different between the groups (P = .63). The overall in-hospital mortality rate was 5.8% in patients with FES and 3.4% in those without FES (P = .11). Conditional logistic regression models to identify risk factors associated with FES shows long bone and open fractures in extremities injury were associated with FES. Primary bone reduction and fixation was not associated independently with FES (OR, 1.80; 95% CI, 0.92-3.54), but delay time to the operation was associated with FES (OR, 2.21; 95% CI, 1.16-4.23).Interpretation: Long bone and open fractures in injuries to the extremities were associated with FES. Although bone reduction and fixation were not associated with FES, delay time to the operation was associated with FES. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Updated and precise knowledge of the spectrum of pathogens is essential in the management of sepsis. • Using a nationwide cohort in Japan, the current spectrum of pathogens in sepsis was evaluated. • The most common pathogen was Escherichia coli , followed by Klebsiella pneumoniae. • The pattern of causative pathogens varied widely by the anatomical site of infection. • The highest mortality of 47.5% was observed in patients with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. There is no one-size-fits-all empiric antimicrobial therapy for sepsis because the pathogens vary according to the site of infection and have changed over time. Therefore, updating knowledge on the spectrum of pathogens is necessary for the rapid administration of appropriate antimicrobials. The aim of this study was to elucidate the current spectrum of pathogens and its variation by site of infection in sepsis. This was a prospective nationwide cohort study of consecutive adult patients with sepsis in 59 intensive care units in Japan. The spectrum of pathogens was evaluated in all patients and in subgroups by site of infection. Regression analyses were conducted to evaluate the associations between the pathogens and mortality. The study cohort comprised 1184 patients. The most common pathogen was Escherichia coli (21.5%), followed by Klebsiella pneumoniae (9.0%). However, the pattern varied widely by site of infection; for example, gram-positive bacteria were the dominant pathogen in bone/soft tissue infection (55.7%) and cardiovascular infection (52.6%), but were rarely identified in urinary tract infection (6.4%). In contrast, gram-negative bacteria were the predominant pathogens in abdominal infection (38.4%) and urinary tract infection (72.0%). The highest mortality of 47.5% was observed in patients infected with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus , which was significantly associated with an increased risk of death (odds ratio 1.88, 95% confidence interval 1.22–2.91). This study revealed the current spectrum of pathogens and its variation based on the site of infection, which is essential for empiric antimicrobial therapy against sepsis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Current research regarding the association between body mass index (BMI) and altered clinical outcomes of sepsis in Asian populations is insufficient. We investigated the association between BMI and clinical outcomes using two Japanese cohorts of severe sepsis (derivation cohort, Chiba University Hospital, n = 614; validation cohort, multicenter cohort, n = 1561). Participants were categorized into the underweight (BMI < 18.5) and non-underweight (BMI ≥ 18.5) groups. The primary outcome was 28-day mortality. Univariate analysis of the derivation cohort indicated increased 28-day mortality trend in the underweight group compared to the non-underweight group (underweight 24.4% [20/82 cases] vs. non-underweight 16.0% [85/532 cases]; p = 0.060). In the primary analysis, multivariate analysis adjusted for baseline imbalance revealed that patients in the underweight group had a significantly increased 28-day mortality compared to those in the non-underweight group (p = 0.031, adjusted odds ratio [OR] 1.91, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.06–3.46). In a repeated analysis using a multicenter validation cohort (underweight n = 343, non-underweight n = 1218), patients in the underweight group had a significantly increased 28-day mortality compared to those in the non-underweight group (p = 0.045, OR 1.40, 95% CI 1.00–1.97). In conclusion, patients with a BMI < 18.5 had a significantly increased 28-day mortality compared to those with a BMI ≥ 18.5 in Japanese cohorts with severe sepsis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Although the quick Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (qSOFA) has been recommended for identifying patients at higher risk of hospital death, it has only a 60% sensitivity for in-hospital mortality. On the other hand, hypothermia associates with increased mortality and organ failure in patients with sepsis. This study aimed to assess the predictive validity of qSOFA for identifying patients with sepsis at higher risk of multiple organ dysfunction or death and the complementary effect of hypothermia. Methods: Patients with severe sepsis admitted to intensive care units (ICUs) were retrospectively analyzed. The predictive validities of qSOFA (≥2, positive) and the complementary effect of hypothermia (body temperature ≤36.5°C) for the identification of death or multiorgan dysfunction were evaluated. Results: Of the 624 patients, 230 (36.9%) developed multiorgan dysfunction and 144 (23.1%) died within 28 days; 527 (84.5%) had a positive qSOFA. The 28-day mortality rates of patients with positive and negative qSOFA were 25.4% and 10.3%, respectively (P =.001). The rate of positive qSOFA was higher in patients with multiorgan dysfunction (sensitivity, 0.896; specificity, 0.185) and among patients who died within 28 days (sensitivity, 0.931; specificity, 0.181); 10 (6.9%) of 144 deaths were not identified. In cases of positive qSOFA without hypothermia, positive qSOFA + hypothermia, or negative qSOFA with hypothermia, the predictive value for 28-day mortality improved (sensitivity, 0.979). Among the 144 patients who died, only 3 were not identified. Conclusion: A qSOFA score ≥2 may identify >90% of 28-day deaths among patients with severe sepsis; hypothermia may complement the predictive ability of qSOFA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: We examined whether outcomes of paediatric out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) are associated with a hospital characteristic defined by the annual number of invasive mechanical ventilation cases, suggesting hospitals' experience in caring for severely ill paediatric patients.Method: We analysed the Japanese Diagnosis Procedure Combination database from 2010 to 2017. We identified children (<18 years) with OHCA and post-resuscitation intensive care (defined as invasive mechanical ventilation and/or catecholamine infusion). Hospitals were divided into four groups by mean annual number of paediatric cases involving invasive mechanical ventilation. The primary outcome was in-hospital mortality, and the secondary outcome was unfavourable outcomes (death or medical care dependency at discharge). Multivariable logistic regression analyses were conducted to examine the relationship between hospitals' experience and outcomes.Results: We included 2540 paediatric OHCA patients from 385 institutions. Overall in-hospital mortality was 62.4%, with rates of 69.6%, 61.3%, 61.8%, and 57.0% in hospitals with low (≤48 cases/year), low-intermediate (48-110), high-intermediate (110-164), and high (>164) experience levels (P < .001), respectively. Compared to hospitals with low experience, adjusted odds ratios (95% confidence interval) for hospitals with low-intermediate, high-intermediate, and high experience were as follows: primary outcome: 0.64 (0.40-1.01), 0.67 (0.42-1.05), and 0.46 (0.31-0.70), respectively; secondary outcome: 0.93 (0.55-1.57), 0.95 (0.63-1.43), and 0.67 (0.46-0.96), respectively.Conclusion: Japanese hospitals with higher experience in caring for severely ill paediatric patients showed lower mortality for paediatric OHCA. This fact should be considered by the Emergency Medical Systems when deciding transport strategy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sepsis-3 proposed the quick Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (qSOFA) to identify sepsis patients likely to have poor outcome. The clinical utility of qSOFA still remains controversial because its predictive accuracy for mortality is quite different across the validation studies. We hypothesized that one of the major causes for these controversial findings was the heterogeneity in severity across the studies, and evaluated the association between severity of illness and the prognostic accuracy of qSOFA. This was a post hoc analysis of a prospective nationwide cohort of consecutive adult patients with sepsis in 59 intensive care units in Japan. Regression trees analysis for survival was used to classify patients according to severity of illness as determined by SOFA score on registration. We conducted receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analyses and evaluated the differences in the area under the ROC curve (AUROC). As a subgroup analysis, we conducted the above evaluations in emergency department (ED) and non-ED patients separately. We included 1114 patients fulfilling the criteria and classified them into three subsets according to severity. The AUROC for mortality was significantly different according to the severity of illness (p = 0.007), with the highest AUROC being in the low-severity subset (patients with SOFA score ≤ 7). Interestingly, our subgroup analysis revealed that a significant difference in the AUROC of qSOFA was observed only in ED patients. This study suggested that lower severity of illness was associated with the relatively higher prognostic accuracy of qSOFA, especially in ED patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sepsis leads to coagulopathy by the activation of inflammatory mediators and vascular endothelial cell injury. A number of biomarkers are used to evaluate coagulopathy on sepsis. Fibrinogen and antithrombin activity have been reported as biomarkers of coagulopathy; however, the utility of these two markers has not been well established. This study aimed to evaluate the detailed association between these two markers and clinical outcomes in sepsis patients. This was a post hoc analysis of a multicenter, prospective cohort study conducted in 59 intensive care units throughout Japan from January 2016 to March 2017. We included 1103 adult patients with severe sepsis based on the Sepsis-2 criteria. The associations between the coagulation markers and in-hospital mortality were examined using linear and non-linear logistic regression analyses. We also evaluated the associations between the coagulation markers and disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) scores. The International Society on Thrombosis and Haemostasis overt DIC score was calculated after subtracting the fibrinogen component. The decreased levels of the fibrinogen and antithrombin activity were significantly associated with an increase in mortality (P = 0.011 and 0.002, respectively). In addition, cubic spline regression demonstrated that mortality sharply increased at a fibrinogen level of approximately <200 mg/dL and at an antithrombin activity of approximately <50%. Similarly, the decreased levels of the two markers non-linearly correlated with the elevation of DIC score. The fibrinogen level and antithrombin activity should be reconsidered as unique biomarkers for sepsis and sepsis-induced DIC. • A cubic spline model assessed nonlinear associations between markers and outcomes. • Fibrinogen levels of <200 mg/dL sharply increased the risk of mortality. • Antithrombin activity of <50% sharply increased the risk of mortality. • Fibrinogen and antithrombin were also non-linearly associated with DIC severity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]