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Purpose To investigate the impact of organizational characteristics and processes of care on hospital mortality and resource use in patients with cancer admitted to intensive care units (ICUs). Patients and Methods We performed a retrospective cohort study of 9,946 patients with cancer (solid, n = 8,956; hematologic, n = 990) admitted to 70 ICUs (51 located in general hospitals and 19 in cancer centers) during 2013. We retrieved patients’ clinical and outcome data from an electronic ICU quality registry. We surveyed ICUs regarding structure, organization, staffing patterns, and processes of care. We used mixed multivariable logistic regression analysis to identify characteristics associated with hospital mortality and efficient resource use in the ICU. Results Median number of patients with cancer per center was 110 (interquartile range, 58 to 154), corresponding to 17.9% of all ICU admissions. ICU and hospital mortality rates were 15.9% and 25.4%, respectively. After adjusting for relevant patient characteristics, presence of clinical pharmacists in the ICU (odds ratio [OR], 0.67; 95% CI, 0.49 to 0.90), number of protocols (OR, 0.92; 95% CI, 0.87 to 0.98), and daily meetings between oncologists and intensivists for care planning (OR, 0.69; 95% CI, 0.52 to 0.91) were associated with lower mortality. Implementation of protocols (OR, 1.52; 95% CI, 1.11 to 2.07) and meetings between oncologists and intensivists (OR, 4.70; 95% CI, 1.15 to 19.22) were also independently associated with more efficient resource use. Neither admission to ICUs in cancer centers compared with general hospitals nor annual case volume had an impact on mortality or resource use. Conclusion Organizational aspects, namely the implementation of protocols and presence of clinical pharmacists in the ICU, and close collaboration between oncologists and ICU teams are targets to improve mortality and resource use in critically ill patients with cancer.

OBJECTIVES: Acute kidney injury is associated with many conditions, and no interventions to improve the outcomes of established acute kidney injury have been developed. We performed this study to determine whether goal-directed therapy conducted during the early stages of acute kidney injury could change the course of the disease. METHODS: This was a multicenter prospective randomized controlled study. Patients with early acute kidney injury in the critical care unit were randomly allocated to a standard care (control) group or a goal-directed therapy group with 8h of intensive treatment to maximize oxygen delivery, and all patients were evaluated during a period of 72h. ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT02414906. RESULTS: A total of 143 patients were eligible for the study, and 99 patients were randomized. Central venous oxygen saturation was significantly increased and the serum lactate level significantly was decreased from baseline levels in the goal-directed therapy group (p=0.001) compared to the control group (p=0.572). No significant differences in the change in serum creatinine level (p=0.96), persistence of acute kidney injury beyond 72h (p=0.064) or the need for renal replacement therapy (p=0.82) were observed between the two groups. In-hospital mortality was significantly lower in the goal-directed therapy group than in the control group (33% vs. 51%; RR: 0.61, 95% CI: 0.37-1.00, p=0.048, number needed to treat=5). CONCLUSIONS: Goal-directed therapy for patients in the early stages of acute kidney injury did not change the disease course.

BACKGROUND This study was undertaken to evaluate the clinical characteristics and outcomes of patients with cancer requiring nonpalliative ventilatory support. METHODS This was a secondary analysis of a prospective cohort study conducted in 28 Brazilian ICUs evaluating adult patients with cancer requiring invasive mechanical ventilation (MV) or noninvasive ventilation (NIV) during the first 48 h of their ICU stay. We used logistic regression to identify the variables associated with hospital mortality. RESULTS Of 717 patients, 263 (37%) (solid tumors = 227; hematologic malignancies = 36) received ventilatory support. NIV was initially used in 85 patients (32%), and 178 (68%) received MV. Additionally, NIV followed by MV occurred in 45 patients (53%). Hospital mortality rates were 67% in all patients, 40% in patients receiving NIV only, 69% when NIV was followed by MV, and 73% in patients receiving MV only ( P CONCLUSIONS Patients with cancer with good PS and nonprogressive disease requiring ventilatory support should receive full intensive care, because one-half of these patients survive. On the other hand, provision of palliative care should be considered the main goal for patients with poor PS and progressive underlying malignancy.

Fernando A. Bozza. Fundacao Oswaldo Cruz. Instituto Nacional de Infectologia Evandro Chagas. Documento produzido em parceria ou por autor vinculado a Fiocruz, mas nao consta a informacao no documento.

Sepsis is a major cause of mortality among critically ill patients with cancer. Information about clinical outcomes and factors associated with increased risk of death in these patients is necessary to help physicians recognize those patients who are most likely to benefit from ICU therapy and identify possible targets for intervention.In this study, we evaluated cancer patients with sepsis chosen from a multicenter prospective study to characterize their clinical characteristics and to identify independent risk factors associated with hospital mortality.Subgroup analysis of a multicenter prospective cohort study conducted in 28 Brazilian intensive care units (ICUs) to evaluate adult cancer patients with severe sepsis and septic shock. We used logistic regression to identify variables associated with hospital mortality.Of the 717 patients admitted to the participating ICUs, 268 (37%) had severe sepsis (n = 142, 53%) or septic shock (n = 126, 47%). These patients comprised the population of the present study. The mean score on the third version of the Simplified Acute Physiology Score was 62.9 ± 17.7 points, and the median Sequential Organ Failure Assessment score was 9 (7-12) points. The most frequent sites of infection were the lungs (48%), intraabdominal region (25%), bloodstream as primary infection (19%), and urinary tract (17%). Half of the patients had microbiologically proven infections, and Gram-negative bacteria were the most common pathogens causing sepsis (31%). ICU and hospital mortality rates were 42% and 56%, respectively. In multivariable analysis, the number of acute organ dysfunctions (odds ratio [OR], 1.48; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.16-1.87), hematological malignancies (OR, 2.57; 95% CI, 1.05-6.27), performance status 2-4 (OR, 2.53; 95% CI, 1.44-4.43), and polymicrobial infections (OR, 3.74; 95% CI, 1.52-9.21) were associated with hospital mortality.Sepsis is a common cause of critical illness in patients with cancer and remains associated with high mortality. Variables related to underlying malignancy, sepsis severity, and characteristics of infection are associated with a grim prognosis.

This study was undertaken to evaluate the clinical characteristics and outcomes of patients with cancer requiring nonpalliative ventilatory support.This was a secondary analysis of a prospective cohort study conducted in 28 Brazilian ICUs evaluating adult patients with cancer requiring invasive mechanical ventilation (MV) or noninvasive ventilation (NIV) during the first 48 h of their ICU stay. We used logistic regression to identify the variables associated with hospital mortality.Of 717 patients, 263 (37%) (solid tumors = 227; hematologic malignancies = 36) received ventilatory support. NIV was initially used in 85 patients (32%), and 178 (68%) received MV. Additionally, NIV followed by MV occurred in 45 patients (53%). Hospital mortality rates were 67% in all patients, 40% in patients receiving NIV only, 69% when NIV was followed by MV, and 73% in patients receiving MV only (P.001). Adjusting for the type of admission, newly diagnosed malignancy (OR, 3.59; 95% CI, 1.28-10.10), recurrent or progressive malignancy (OR, 3.67; 95% CI, 1.25-10.81), tumoral airway involvement (OR, 4.04; 95% CI, 1.30-12.56), performance status (PS) 2 to 4 (OR, 2.39; 95% CI, 1.24-4.59), NIV followed by MV (OR, 3.00; 95% CI, 1.09-8.18), MV as initial ventilatory strategy (OR, 3.53; 95% CI, 1.45-8.60), and Sequential Organ Failure Assessment score (each point except the respiratory domain) (OR, 1.15; 95% CI, 1.03-1.29) were associated with hospital mortality. Hospital survival in patients with good PS and nonprogressive malignancy and without tumoral airway involvement was 53%. Conversely, patients with poor functional capacity and cancer progression had unfavorable outcomes.Patients with cancer with good PS and nonprogressive disease requiring ventilatory support should receive full intensive care, because one-half of these patients survive. On the other hand, provision of palliative care should be considered the main goal for patients with poor PS and progressive underlying malignancy.

Information about lung cancer patients surviving critical illnesses is very scarce. Our aim was to evaluate the outcomes and continuing of anticancer treatments in lung cancer patients surviving ICU admission.