Background. Hospital-acquired pneumonia (HAP) is associated with high mortality. In Central Europe, there is a dearth of information on the prevalence and treatment of HAP. This project was aimed at collecting multicenter epidemiological data on patients with HAP in the Czech Republic and comparing them with supraregional data. Methods. This prospective, multicenter, ob servational study processed data from a database supported by a Czech Ministry of Health grant project. Included were all consecutive patients aged 18 and over who were admitted to participating intensive care units (ICUs) between 1 May 2013 and 31 December 2014 and met the inclusion criterion of having HAP. The primary endpoint was to analyze the relationships between 30-day mortality (during the stay in or after discharge from ICUs) and the microbiological etiological agent and adequacy of initial empirical antibiotic therapy in HAP patients. Results. The group dataset contained data on 330 enrolled patients. The final validated dataset involved 214 patients, 168 males (78.5%) and 46 females (21.5%), from whom 278 valid lower airway samples were obtained. The mean patient age was 59.9 years. The mean APACHE II score at admission was 21. Community-acquired pneumonia was identified in 13 patients and HAP in 201 patients, of whom 26 (12.1%) had early-onset and 175 (81.8%) had late-onset HAP. Twenty-two bacterial species were identified as etiologic agents but only six of them exceeded a frequency of detection of 5% (Klebsiella pneumoniae 20.4%, Pseudomonas aeruginosa 20.0%, Escherichia coli 10.8%, Enterobacter spp. 8.1%, Staphylococcus aureus 6.2% and Burkholderia cepacia complex 5.8%). Patients infected with Staphylococcus aureus had significantly higher rates of early-onset HAP than those with other etiologic agents. The overall 30-day mortality rate for HAP was 29.9%, with 19.2% mortality for early-onset HAP and 31.4% mortality for late-onset HAP. Patients with late-onset HAP receiving adequate initial empirical antibiotic therapy had statistically significantly lower 30-day mortality than those receiving inadequate initial antibiotic therapy (23.8% vs 42.9%). Patients with ventilatorassociated pneumonia (VAP) had significantly higher mortality than those who developed HAP with no association with mechanical ventilation (34.6% vs 12.7%). Patients having VAP treated with adequate initial antibiotic therapy had lower 30-day mortality than those receiving inadequate therapy (27.2% vs 44.8%). Conclusions. The present study was the first to collect multicenter data on the epidemiology of HAP in the Central European Region, with respect to the incidence of etiologic agents causing HAP. It was concerned with relationships between 30-day patient mortality and the type of HAP, etiologic agent and adequacy of initial empirical antibiotic therapy.
Objectives: The aim of the study was to obtain data on demands on the intensive care capacities to treat COVID-19 patients, and to identify predictors for in-hospital mortality.Methods: The prospective observational multicentre study carried out from 1 March till 30 June 2020 included adult patients with confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection with respiratory failure requiring ventilatory support or high-flow nasal oxygen therapy (HFNO).Results: Seventy-four patients, 46 males and 28 females, median age 67.5 (Q1-Q3: 56-75) years, were included. Sixty-four patients (86.5%) had comorbidity. Sixty-six patients (89.2%) were mechanically ventilated, four of them received extracorporeal membrane oxygenation therapy. Eight patients (10.8%) were treated with non-invasive ventilation and HFNO only. The median of intensive care unit (ICU) stay was 22.5 days. Eighteen patients (24.3%) needed continuous renal replacement therapy. Thirty patients (40.5%) died. Age and acute kidney injury were identified as independent predictors of in-hospital death, and chronic kidney disease showed trend towards statistical significance for poor outcome.Conclusions: Sufficient number of intensive care beds, organ support equipment and well-trained staff is a decisive factor in managing the COVID-19 epidemic. The study focused on the needs of intensive care in the COVID-19 patients. Advanced age and acute kidney injury were identified as independent predictors for in-hospital mortality. When compared to clinical course and ICU management of patients with severe community-acquired pneumonia caused by other pathogens, we observed prolonged need for ventilatory support, high rate of progression to acute respiratory distress syndrome and significant mortality in studied population.
Myristic acid is identified as a metabolite with the highest diagnostic sensitivity and specificity in the metabolome of patients with bacteraemia. Its significant decrease has been observed in patients with septic shock not responding to treatment. Another study has reported a close correlation of myristic acid levels with the outcome of severe trauma patients. Myristic acid concentrations were investigated in a cohort of septic patients and patients with Systemic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (SIRS) in 5 consecutive days following diagnosis and compared to healthy controls. The study population groups—Sepsis 34, SIRS 31, and Healthy Control 120 patients were included. Serum samples were analyzed using gas chromatography and mass spectrometry. The myristic acid levels in the Sepsis Group and SIRS Group were found to be significantly higher when compared to healthy controls. The serum concentration of myristic acid in septic patients with bacteraemia was higher than in septic patients without bacteraemia. Most patients with sepsis and SIRS had the highest levels of myristic acid within 24 h after an established diagnosis. Myristic acid should be considered as a new candidate marker of severe inflammation and sepsis. A simplified analysis and sufficient body of validated data are necessary steps towards the introduction of this metabolite into routine clinical practice.
Myristic acid was identified as a metabolite with the highest diagnostic sensitivity and specificity in the metabolome of patients with bacteraemia. Subsequently, its significant decrease was observed in patients in septic shock not responding to treatment. In our study we have captured myristic acid serum level kinetics in 96 hours following accidental intravenous self-administration of eubiotic Hylak forte causing infection-like systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS). To our knowledge, this is the first time the kinetics of myristic acid levels is presented in a septic patient. Myristic acid was evaluated in comparison with other inflammatory biomarkers and with its level in a control group of healthy subjects. Myristic acid levels during septic response were significantly elevated in comparison with the control group. The peak level was recorded almost immediately after the insult with a gradual decrease within 96 hours. Myristic acid appears to be a promising biomarker in sepsis diagnostics, further research by our group into this topic is ongoing.
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