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Foscarnet (trisodium phosphonoformate hexahydrate) is an antiviral agent used to treat cytomegalovirus disease in immunocompromised patients. One common side effect is acute ionized hypocalcemia and hypomagnesemia following intravenous administration. Foscarnet-induced ionized hypomagnesemia might contribute to ionized hypocalcemia by impairing excretion of preformed parathyroid hormone (PTH) or by producing target organ resistance. Prevention of ionized hypomagnesemia following foscarnet administration could blunt the development of ionized hypocalcemia. To determine whether intravenous magnesium ameliorates the decline in ionized calcium and/or magnesium following foscarnet infusions, MgSO 4 at doses of 1, 2, and 3 g was administered in a double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized, crossover trial to 12 patients with AIDS and cytomegalovirus disease. Overall, increasing doses of MgSO 4 reduced or eliminated foscarnetinduced acute ionized hypomagnesemia. Supplementation, however, had no discernible effect on foscarnetinduced ionized hypocalcemia despite significant increases in serum PTH levels. No dose-related, clinically significant adverse events were found, suggesting that intravenous supplementation with up to 3 g of MgSO 4 was safe in this chronically ill population. Since parenteral MgSO 4 did not alter foscarnet-induced ionized hypocalcemia or symptoms associated with foscarnet, routine intravenous supplementation for patients with normal serum magnesium levels is not recommended during treatment with foscarnet.

Rationale. Although noninvasive positive pressure ventilation (NIPPV) is increasingly used in acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) to avoid invasive mechanical ventilation (IMV), the data supporting its benefit for this indication are lacking. Objectives. To analyze the all-cause in-hospital mortality rate and length of stay (LOS) for ARDS patients who received NIPPV in the United States (US) compared to those who were initially intubated. Our secondary outcome of interest was to determine the predicting factors for NIPPV failure. Methods. We used the 2016 National Inpatient Sample database to identify 4,277 adult records with ARDS who required positive pressure ventilation. We divided the cohort into initial treatment with IMV or NIPPV. Then, the NIPPV group was further subdivided into NIPPV failure or success. We defined NIPPV failure as same-patient use of NIPPV and IMV either on the same day or using IMV at a later date. We analyzed the in-hospital mortality, LOS, and NIPPV failure rate. Linear regression of log-transformed LOS and logistic regression of binary outcomes were used to test for associations. Results. The NIPPV success group had the lowest mortality rate (4.9% [3.8, 6.4]) and the shortest LOS (7 days [6.6, 7.5]). The NIPPV failure rate was 21%. Sepsis, pneumonia, and chronic liver disease were associated with higher odds of NIPPV failure (adjusted OR: 4.47, 2.65, and 2.23, respectively). There was no significant difference between NIPPV failure and IMV groups in-hospital mortality (26.9% [21.8, 32.8] vs. 25.1% [23.5, 26.9], p=0.885) or LOS (16 [14, 18] vs. 15.6 [15, 16.3], p=0.926). Conclusions. NIPPV success in ARDS exhibits significantly lower hospital mortality rates and shorter LOS compared with IMV, and NIPPV failure exhibits no significant difference in hospital mortality or LOS compared with patients who were initially intubated. Therefore, an initial trial of NIPPV may be considered in ARDS. Sepsis, pneumonia, and chronic liver disease were associated with higher odds of NIPPV failure; these factors should be used to stratify patients to the most suitable ventilation modality.

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