Search

Beating the odds with systematic individualized care: Nationwide prospective follow-up of all patients with COVID-19 in Iceland The current pandemic of a novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) began in December 2019 in Wuhan, China, and has since spread worldwide [1]. In mid-January 2020, the Directorate of Health (DOH) and the Department of Civil Protection and Emergency Management (DCPEM) revised the current pandemic preparedness response plan. [Extracted from the article]

Background: Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a relatively common complication following CABG and is associated with adverse outcomes. Nonetheless, we hypothesized that the majority of patients make a good long-term recovery of their renal function. We studied the incidence and risk factors of AKI together with renal recovery and long-term survival in patients who developed AKI following CABG.Methods: This nationwide study examined AKI among 1754 consecutive patients undergoing CABG in 2001-2013. AKI was defined according to the KDIGO criteria.Results: Postoperatively 184 (11%) patients developed AKI; 121 (7%), 27 (2%), and 36 (2%) at stages 1, 2, and 3, respectively. AKI was an independent risk factor for chronic kidney disease (CKD) and AKI patients had worse post-operative outcomes. Lower pre-operative glomerular filtration rate, higher EuroSCORE and BMI, diabetes, reoperation, and units of red blood cells transfused were independent risk factors of AKI. At post-operative day 10, renal recovery rates, defined as serum creatinine ratio <1.25 of baseline, were 96 (95% CI 91-99%), 78 (95% CI 53-90%), and 94% (95% CI 77-98%) for AKI stages 1, 2, and 3, respectively. Long-term survival was predicted by AKI with 10-year survival of patients without AKI being 76% and those with AKI stages 1, 2, and 3 being 63%, 56%, and 49%, respectively (P < 0.001).Conclusion: Depending on the severity of the initial AKI, 78-97% of patients made good recovery of their kidney function. However, AKI was significantly linked to progression to CKD and long-term survival remained markedly affected by the severity of the initial kidney injury. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The most frequently used model to describe the exponential increase in mortality rate over age is the Gompertz equation. Logarithmically transformed, the equation conforms to a straight line, of which the slope has been interpreted as the rate of senescence. Earlier, we proposed the derivative function of the Gompertz equation as a superior descriptor of senescence rate. Here, we tested both measures of the rate of senescence in a population of patients with end-stage renal disease. It is clinical dogma that patients on dialysis experience accelerated senescence, whereas those with a functional kidney transplant have mortality rates comparable to the general population. Therefore, we calculated the age-specific mortality rates for European patients on dialysis ( n = 274 221; follow-up = 594 767 person-years), for European patients with a functioning kidney transplant ( n = 61 286; follow-up = 345 024 person-years), and for the general European population. We found higher mortality rates, but a smaller slope of logarithmic mortality curve for patients on dialysis compared with both patients with a functioning kidney transplant and the general population ( P < 0.001). A classical interpretation of the Gompertz model would imply that the rate of senescence in patients on dialysis is lower than in patients with a functioning transplant and lower than in the general population. In contrast, the derivative function of the Gompertz equation yielded the highest senescence rates for patients on dialysis, whereas the rate was similar in patients with a functioning transplant and the general population. We conclude that the rate of senescence is better described by the derivative function of the Gompertz equation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AIMS: Diabetic nephropathy is an uncommon cause of end-stage renal disease in Iceland in contrast to most industrialized countries. The aim of this study was to examine the incidence of diabetic nephropathy in Iceland. METHODS: All patients diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes in Iceland before 1992 were studied retrospectively. Patients diagnosed before age 30, who were insulin dependent from the onset, were defined as having Type 1 diabetes. Diabetic nephropathy was defined as persistent proteinuria measured with a dipstick test (Albustix) on three consecutive clinic visits at least 2 months apart. Patients were followed to the end of year 1998, to their last recorded outpatient visit, or until death. The cumulative incidence of diabetic nephropathy was calculated with the Kaplan-Meier method and presented according to the duration of diabetes divided into 5-year intervals. RESULTS: A total of 343 patients with Type 1 diabetes were identified. The mean follow-up period was 20.2 +/- 11.4 (mean +/- sd) years. Only 9.3% of patients were lost to follow-up. Sixty-five patients developed diabetic nephropathy. The cumulative incidence was 22.6% at 20 years and levelled off at 40.3% after approximately 35 years of diabetes duration. No significant changes in cumulative incidence were observed over time. Mean glycated haemoglobin was 8.4% in patients with proteinuria and 7.8% in a group of patients without proteinuria that was matched for age, gender and duration of diabetes (P = 0.04). CONCLUSIONS: The cumulative incidence of diabetic nephropathy in Iceland is comparable with previously reported cumulative incidence rates and has remained unchanged. Glycaemic control was significantly better in patients without proteinuria. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A response from the author of the article "Renal recovery and long-term survival following acute kidney injury after coronary artery surgery: a nationwide study" in the 2016 issue is presented.

Monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance (MGUS) is the asymptomatic precursor of multiple myeloma and related diseases but has also been associated with thrombosis. Prior studies have not been based on screened cohorts leading to bias. We assessed the risk of thrombosis in a cohort of 75 422 individuals over 40 years old who were screened for MGUS in Iceland. We also evaluated the association of M protein concentration with thrombotic risk. A total of 3668 participants had MGUS. After a median follow-up of ~3.7 years, 124 venous and 252 arterial thrombotic events (10.3 and 21.0 per 1000 person years respectively) were observed in the MGUS group, compared to 1509 and 3471 in the non-MGUS group (6.0 and 13.8 per 1000 person years respectively). After adjusting for multiple confounders, MGUS was associated with an increased risk of venous thrombosis (hazard ratio [HR] = 1.43; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.19-1.73) but not arterial thrombosis (HR = 0.96; 95% CI: 0.87-1.13). M protein concentration was not associated with venous (p = 0.72) or arterial (p = 0.95) thrombosis. The findings show, in a screened cohort, that MGUS is associated with venous, but not arterial, thrombosis. Furthermore, they suggest that there is a subset of individuals with MGUS with subclinical monoclonal gammopathy of thrombotic significance., (© 2024 British Society for Haematology and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Background: Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a serious complication following major surgery. This study examined the incidence and risk factors of AKI following orthopaedic surgeries in an Icelandic cohort, as well as the association between AKI and patient- and surgery-related factors., Methods: This retrospective cohort study comprised all patients 18 years and older who underwent orthopaedic surgeries at Landspitali - The National University Hospital in the years 2006-2018 with available serum creatinine (SCr) measurements adjacent to the surgery to stage AKI. AKI was defined according to SCr portion of the KDIGO criteria. Logistic regression was used to identify patient- and surgical factors related to progression of AKI and Poisson-regression was used to explore changes in incidence., Results: A total of 222 cases of AKI following 3208 surgeries (6.9%) were identified in the study period with a rise in the incidence by about 17% per year. Higher age (odds ratio (OR), 1.02, 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.01-1.04 per year) and underlying reduction in kidney function (OR 1.93 (1.30-2.81), 3.24 (2.08-4.96) and 4.08 (2.35-6.96) for estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) of 30-59, 15-29 and <15 mL/min/1.73 m 2 compared with eGFR >60 mL/min/1.73 m 2 ) were associated with higher risk of AKI, but female sex was associated with decreased odds (OR = 0.73; 95% CI, 0.54-0.98). After correcting for age, sex, preoperative kidney function, emergency surgery and underlying comorbidities and frailty, there was an increased risk of long-term mortality in patients with AKI (HR 1.41, 95% CI 1.08-1.85), and patients who developed AKI also had accelerated progression of chronic kidney disease compared with patients who did not develop AKI., Conclusions: The incidence of AKI following orthopaedic surgeries is increasing and is associated with adverse outcomes. It is important that elderly individuals and patients who have reduced kidney function receive adequate monitoring and surveillance in the perioperative period., (© 2023 Acta Anaesthesiologica Scandinavica Foundation.)

Objectives: All SARS-CoV-2-positive persons in Iceland were prospectively monitored and those who required outpatient evaluation or were admitted to hospital underwent protocolized evaluation that included a standardized panel of biomarkers. The aim was to describe longitudinal changes in inflammatory biomarkers throughout the infection period of patients with COVID-19 requiring different levels of care., Design: Registry-based study., Setting: Nationwide study in Iceland., Patients: All individuals who tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 by real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) from February 28 to December 31, 2020 in Iceland and had undergone blood tests between 5 days before and 21 days following onset of symptoms., Measurements and Main Results: Data were collected from the electronic medical record system of Landspitali-The National University Hospital of Iceland. Data analyses were descriptive and the evolution of biomarkers was visualized using locally weighted scatterplot smoothing curves stratified by the worst clinical outcome experienced by the patient: outpatient evaluation only, hospitalization, and either intensive care unit (ICU) admission or death. Of 571 included patients, 310 (54.3%) only required outpatient evaluation or treatment, 202 (35.4%) were hospitalized, and 59 (10.3%) were either admitted to the ICU or died. An early and persistent separation of the mean lymphocyte count and plasma C-reactive protein (CRP) and ferritin levels was observed between the three outcome groups, which occurred prior to hospitalization for those who later were admitted to ICU or died. Lower lymphocyte count, and higher CRP and ferritin levels correlated with worse clinical outcomes. Patients who were either admitted to the ICU or died had sustained higher white blood cell and neutrophil counts, and elevated plasma levels of procalcitonin and D-dimer compared with the other groups., Conclusions: Lymphocyte count and plasma CRP and ferritin levels might be suitable parameters to assess disease severity early during COVID-19 and may serve as predictors of worse outcome., (© 2022 Acta Anaesthesiologica Scandinavica Foundation.)

Background: The deceased organ donation rate in Iceland has been low compared with other Western countries. The aim of this study was to explore the potential for organ donation after brain death in Iceland., Methods: Observational cohort study of patients with catastrophic brain injury who died in intensive care units (ICUs) at hospitals in Iceland in 2003-2016. Medical records were retrospectively reviewed to identify potential donors (PDs), using the WHO Critical Pathway for Deceased Donation. Trends in annual incidence of PDs, conversion to actual donors, and family refusals were assessed., Results: Among 1537 patients who died in the ICU, 125 (8.1%) were identified as PDs. Of 103 PDs who were declared brain dead, consent for organ donation was pursued in 84 cases and granted in 63. Fifty-six became actual donors. The annual donation rate averaged 13 per million population (pmp), but rose abruptly in the final 2 years to 36 and 27 pmp, respectively. This was paralleled by an increase in annual incidence of PDs from an average of 28 pmp to 54 and 42 pmp, respectively. The donor conversion rate increased during the study period (P = .026). Twenty-three PDs (18%) were not pursued without an apparent reason., Conclusions: The donation rate increased markedly in the last 2 years of the study period after remaining low for more than a decade. This change can largely be explained by a high incidence of PDs and a low family refusal rate. Missed donation opportunities suggest a potential to maintain a high donation rate in the future., (© 2020 The Acta Anaesthesiologica Scandinavica Foundation. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)