Predictive value of neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio in in-hospital mortality in sepsis patients:A cross-sectional study

Objective:To explore the predictive value of neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio(NLR)in in-hospital mortality in sepsis patients.Methods:A prospective observational cross-sectional study was conducted on 100 patients with septicemia.The data about the patient’s demography,medical history,general examination including pulse rate,blood pressure,etc,use of vasopressor support,need for renal replacement therapy,mechanical ventilation,outcome,and lab parameters including total lymphocyte count with neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio were recorded.And parameters between survivals and non-survivals were compared.Results:Out of 100 patients,80%were from rural backgrounds.Most patients were 50 to 59 years old.26 Patients were dead.The patients in the nonsurvivor group were older and more had a history of diabetes mellitus when compared with the survivor group.The non-survivor group had a higher NLR,APACHE栻,and SOFA score.Conclusions:NLR is a readily available parameter and can be used as a good prognostic indicator for mortality in sepsis patients.

Procalcitionin as a diagnostic marker to distinguish upper and lower gastrointestinal perforation

AIM To assess the accuracy of serum procalcitionin(PCT)as a diagnostic marker in verifying upper and lower gastrointestinal perforation(GIP).METHODS This retrospective study included 46 patients from the surgical intensive care unit(ICU)of the Second Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University who were confirmed to have GIP between June 2013 and December 2016.Demographic and clinical patient data were recorded on admission to ICU.Patients were divided into upper(n=19)and lower(n=27)GIP groups according to the perforation site(above or below Treitz ligament).PCT and WBC count was obtained before laparotomy and then compared between groups.Meanwhile,the diagnostic accuracy of PCT was analyzed.RESULTS Patients with lower GIP exhibited significantly higher APACHE II score,SOFA score and serum PCT level than patients with upper GIP(P=0.017,0.004,and0.001,respectively).There was a significant positive correlation between serum PCT level and APACHE II score or SOFA score(r=0.715 and r=0.611,respectively),while there was a significant negative correlation between serum PCT level and prognosis(r=-0.414).WBC count was not significantly different between the two groups,and WBC count showed no significant correlation with serum PCT level,APACHE II score,SOFA score or prognosis.The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of PCT level to distinguish upper or lower GIP was 0.778.Patients with a serum PCT level above 17.94 ng/d L had a high likelihood of lower GIP,with a sensitivity of 100%and a specificity of 42.1%.CONCLUSION Serum PCT level is a reliable and accurate diagnostic marker in identifying upper or lower GIP before laparotomy.

Scoring systems in critically ill: Which one to use in cancer patients?

BACKGROUND Scoring systems have not been evaluated in oncology patients.We aimed to assess the performance of Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation(APACHE)II,APACHE III,APACHE IV,Simplified Acute Physiology Score(SAPS)II,SAPS III,Mortality Probability Model(MPM)II0 and Sequential Organ Failure Assessment(SOFA)score in critically ill oncology patients.AIM To compare the efficacy of seven commonly employed scoring systems to predict outcomes of critically ill cancer patients.METHODS We conducted a retrospective analysis of 400 consecutive cancer patients admitted in the medical intensive care unit over a two-year period.Primary outcome was hospital mortality and the secondary outcome measure was comparison of various scoring systems in predicting hospital mortality.RESULTS In our study,the overall intensive care unit and hospital mortality was 43.5%and 57.8%,respectively.All of the seven tested scores underestimated mortality.The mortality as predicted by MPM II0 predicted death rate(PDR)was nearest to the actual mortality followed by that predicted by APACHE II,with a standardized mortality rate(SMR)of 1.305 and 1.547,respectively.The best calibration was shown by the APACHE III score(χ^(2)=4.704,P=0.788).On the other hand,SOFA score(χ^(2)=15.966,P=0.025)had the worst calibration,although the difference was not statistically significant.All of the seven scores had acceptable discrimination with good efficacy however,SAPS III PDR and MPM II0 PDR(AUROC=0.762),had a better performance as compared to others.The correlation between the different scoring systems was significant(P<0.001).CONCLUSION All the severity scores were tested under-predicted mortality in the present study.As the difference in efficacy and performance was not statistically significant,the choice of scoring system used may depend on the ease of use and local preferences.

Effect of the Early Introduction of Mild Mobilization Performed by Nurses on the Recovery of Patients in the Intensive Care Unit

Rationale: Recent studies have reported the effectiveness of the early introduction of rehabilitation for preventing muscle weakness in patients in the intensive care unit (ICU). The early introduction of full-scale rehabilitation by a physical therapist is difficult in some cases because of disease severity and/or patient conditions. However, mild mobilization by a nurse (MMN), as a part of standard care performed, may have a positive effect on patient recovery. We examined the effect of the early introduction of MMN on the recovery of patients in the ICU. Methods: We retrospectively examined patients admitted to Niigata University Hospital’s ICU during between April 2014 and March 2015 who were receiving mechanical ventilation for 7 days or more. Patients were divided into two groups according to the date of initiation of MMN: group L comprised patients for whom MMN was started after 72 hours and group E comprised patients for whom MMN was started within 72 hours after ICU admission. The data were analyzed using the Fisher test, Mann-Whitney U test, and Wilcoxon test. Statistical significance was defined as P Results: Sixty-three patients were included: 42 patients in group L and 21 in group E. There was no significant difference between the two groups in patients’ background, including the type of illness, steroid use, presence of sepsis or diabetes, and sequential organ failure assessment (SOFA) score on ICU admission;however, the SOFA score at ICU discharge was significantly decreased in group E compared to that in group L (6.21 versus 4.30;P = 0.034). Conclusion: Our results indicate that MMN may reduce disease severity if started within 72 hours after ICU admission.

Applicability and prognostic effect of Sequential Organ Failure Assessment score in adults hospitalized for infective endocarditis

Background Early identification of patients at risk for adverse outcomes is imperative to improve the prognosis of infective endocarditis(IE).Sequential Organ Failure Assessment(SOFA)score has been reported as an effective assessment tool for predicting the adverse outcomes of infectious diseases,but its applicability and predictive value in IE patients was still poorly known.Methods From 2009 to 2020,a total of 1354 patients diagnosed with definite IE according to the modified Duke criteria were included.SOFA score was calculated by the laboratory and clinical parameters within 24 hours of diagnosis.Discrimination and calibration of SOFA for inhospital mortality were analyzed.Results Patients were divided into two groups according to the optimal cutoff value of SOFA score=2 in the present cohort,which were determined by the receiver operating characteristic(ROC)analysis:High SOFA(≥2,n=496)group and low SOFA group(<2,n=858).SOFA score showed good discrimination and calibration for in-hospital mortality[area under the curve(AUC):0.750,P<0.001;HosmerLemeshow P=0.210].ROC curve showed that SOFA≥2 had a sensitivity of 73.2%and specificity of 66.2%for predicting in-hospital death.Kaplan-Meier analysis showed that SOFA score≥2 was associated with higher 6-month mortality(Log-rank:96.3,P<0.001).Conclusions SOFA score is a practical risk assessment tool for patients admitted to hospital for IE and SOFA scores≥2 is independently associated with in-hospital mortality.