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Rationale: Although proposed as a clinical prompt to sepsis based on predictive validity for mortality, the Quick Sepsis-related Organ Failure Assessment (qSOFA) score is often used as a screening tool, which requires high sensitivity.Objectives: To assess the predictive accuracy of qSOFA for mortality in Brazil, focusing on sensitivity.Methods: We prospectively collected data from two cohorts of emergency department and ward patients. Cohort 1 included patients with suspected infection but without organ dysfunction or sepsis (22 hospitals: 3 public and 19 private). Cohort 2 included patients with sepsis (54 hospitals: 24 public and 28 private). The primary outcome was in-hospital mortality. The predictive accuracy of qSOFA was examined considering only the worst values before the suspicion of infection or sepsis.Measurements and Main Results: Cohort 1 contained 5,460 patients (mortality rate, 14.0%; 95% confidence interval [CI], 13.1-15.0), among whom 78.3% had a qSOFA score less than or equal to 1 (mortality rate, 8.3%; 95% CI, 7.5-9.1). The sensitivity of a qSOFA score greater than or equal to 2 for predicting mortality was 53.9% and the 95% CI was 50.3 to 57.5. The sensitivity was higher for a qSOFA greater than or equal to 1 (84.9%; 95% CI, 82.1-87.3), a qSOFA score greater than or equal to 1 or lactate greater than 2 mmol/L (91.3%; 95% CI, 89.0-93.2), and systemic inflammatory response syndrome plus organ dysfunction (68.7%; 95% CI, 65.2-71.9). Cohort 2 contained 4,711 patients, among whom 62.3% had a qSOFA score less than or equal to 1 (mortality rate, 17.3%; 95% CI, 15.9-18.7), whereas in public hospitals the mortality rate was 39.3% (95% CI, 35.5-43.3).Conclusions: A qSOFA score greater than or equal to 2 has low sensitivity for predicting death in patients with suspected infection in a developing country. Using a qSOFA score greater than or equal to 2 as a screening tool for sepsis may miss patients who ultimately die. Using a qSOFA score greater than or equal to 1 or adding lactate to a qSOFA score greater than or equal to 1 may improve sensitivity.Clinical trial registered with www.clinicaltrials.gov (NCT03158493). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: We aimed to determine the impact of nighttime discharge from the intensive care unit (ICU) to the ward on hospital mortality and readmission rates in consecutive critically ill patients admitted to five Canadian ICUs. We hypothesized that hospital mortality and readmission rates would be higher for patients discharged after hours compared with discharge during the day.Methods: A multi-center retrospective cohort study was carried out at five hospitals in Edmonton, Canada, between July 2002 and December 2009. Nighttime discharge was defined as discharge from the ICU occurring between 07:00 pm and 07:59 am. Logistic regression analysis was used to explore the associations between nighttime discharge and outcomes.Results: Of 19,622 patients discharged alive from the ICU, 3,505 (17.9%) discharges occurred during nighttime. Nighttime discharge occurred more commonly among medical than surgical patients (19.9% vs. 13.8%, P < 0.001) and among those with more comorbid conditions, compared with daytime discharged patients. Crude hospital mortality (11.8% versus 8.8%, P < 0.001) was greater for nighttime discharged as compared to daytime discharged patients. In a multivariable analysis, after adjustment for comorbidities, diagnosis and source of admission, nighttime discharge remains associated with higher mortality (odds ratio [OR] 1.29; 95% CI, 1.14 to 1.46, P < 0.001). This finding was robust in two sensitivity analyses examining discharges occurring between 00:00 am and 04:59 am (OR 1.28; 1.12-1.47; P < 0.001) and for those who died within 48 h of ICU discharge without readmission (OR 1.24; 1.07-1.42, P = 0.002). There was no difference in ICU readmission for nighttime compared with daytime discharges (7.4% vs. 6.9 %, p = 0.26). However, rates were higher for nighttime discharges in community compared with tertiary hospitals (7.7% vs. 5.7%, P = 0.023).Conclusions: In a large integrated health region, 1 in 5 ICU patients are discharged at nighttime, a factor with increasing occurrence during our study and shown to be independently associated with higher hospital mortality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Limited population-based epidemiologic information about sepsis' demography, including its mortality and temporal changes is available from developing countries. We investigated the epidemiology of sepsis deaths in Brazil using secondary data from the Brazilian Mortality Information System.Methods: Retrospective descriptive analysis of Brazilian multiple-cause-of-death data between 2002 and 2010, with sepsis-associated International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision (ICD-10) code indicated as the cause of death. Population-based sepsis associated mortality rates and trends were estimated. Annual population-based mortality rates were calculated using age-stratified population estimates from the 2010 census provided by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics as denominators.Results: The total number of annual deaths recorded in Brazil increased over the decade, from 982,294 deaths reported in 2002 to 1,133,761 deaths reported in 2010. The number of sepsis associated deaths also increased both in absolute numbers and proportions from 95,972 (9.77% of total deaths) in 2002 to 186,712 deaths (16.46%) in 2010. The age-adjusted rate of sepsis-associated mortality increased from 69.5 deaths per 100,000 to 97.8 deaths per 100,000 population from 2002 to 2010 (P < 0.001). Sepsis-associated mortality was higher in individuals older than 60 years of age as compared to subjects aged 0 to 20 years (adjusted rate ratio 15.7 (95% confidence interval (CI) 15.6 to 15.8)) and in male subjects (1.15 (95% CI 1.15 to 1.16)).Conclusions: Between 2002 and 2010 the contribution of sepsis to all cause mortality as reported in multiple-cause-of-death forms increased significantly in Brazil. Age-adjusted mortality rates by sepsis also increased in the last decade. Our results confirm the importance of sepsis as a significant healthcare issue in Brazil. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]