Background The prevalence of extracorporeal cardiopulmonary resuscitation (ECPR) in patients with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) has been increasing rapidly worldwide. However, guidelines or clinical studies do not provide sufficient data on ECPR practice. The aim of this study was to provide real-world data on ECPR for patients with OHCA, including details of complications. Methods We did a retrospective database analysis of observational multicenter cohort study in Japan. Adult patients with OHCA of presumed cardiac etiology who received ECPR between 2013 and 2018 were included. The primary outcome was favorable neurological outcome at hospital discharge, defined as a cerebral performance category of 1 or 2. Results A total of 1644 patients with OHCA were included in this study. The patient age was 18–93 years (median: 60 years). Shockable rhythm in the initial cardiac rhythm at the scene was 69.4%. The median estimated low flow time was 55 min (interquartile range: 45–66 min). Favorable neurological outcome at hospital discharge was observed in 14.1% of patients, and the rate of survival to hospital discharge was 27.2%. The proportions of favorable neurological outcome at hospital discharge in terms of shockable rhythm, pulseless electrical activity, and asystole were 16.7%, 9.2%, and 3.9%, respectively. Complications were observed during ECPR in 32.7% of patients, and the most common complication was bleeding, with the rates of cannulation site bleeding and other types of hemorrhage at 16.4% and 8.5%, respectively. Conclusions In this large cohort, data on the ECPR of 1644 patients with OHCA show that the proportion of favorable neurological outcomes at hospital discharge was 14.1%, survival rate at hospital discharge was 27.2%, and complications were observed during ECPR in 32.7%.

These results suggest that IL-6 has dual roles in the chronic phase of asthma: down-regulation of inflammatory cell infiltration and enhancement of airway remodelling.

The aim of our study is to describe the characteristics of patients who use emergency medical services (EMS), EMS performance, and regional variations in Japan. Methods: We undertook a nationwide, population-based, descriptive review of anonymized ambulance transport records obtained from the Fire and Disaster Management Agency in Japan. All emergency patients transported to emergency medical institutions by EMS personnel from January to December 2016 were enrolled in this study, excluding patients who were not transported. Results: During the study period, 5,097,838 patients were transported to a hospital. Their median age was 69 years, 51.4% were male, and 56.5% were over 65 years old. Median durations from EMS call to EMS arrival on scene were similar among the regions, ranging from 7 to 9 min. However, the longest median duration from EMS call to hospital arrival was 38 min, and the shortest was 31 min across the regions. Among all patients, 350,865 (6.9%) were assessed as being in a severe condition, 14,410 (0.3%) were in very severe condition, and 74,780 (1.5%) were confirmed to be dead at the time of initial medical examination in the emergency department. Conclusions: We described the characteristics of emergency patients and EMS performance in Japan. This registry serves as a basis for providing relevant information to improve prehospital emergency medical systems.

IntroductionCoronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a new viral disease. Uncontrolled inflammation called “cytokine storm” is reported to contribute to disease pathogenesis as well as sepsis. We aimed to identify cytokines related to the pathogenesis of COVID-19 through a proteomics analysis of 1463 plasma proteins, validate these cytokines, and compare them with sepsis.Materials and MethodsIn a derivation cohort of 306 patients with COVID-19, 1463 unique plasma proteins were measured on days 1, 4, and 8. Cytokines associated with disease severity and prognosis were derived. In a validation cohort of 62 COVID-19 patients and 38 sepsis patients treated in the intensive care unit [ICU], these derived cytokines were measured on days 1 (day of ICU admission), 2-3, and 6-8 (maximum: 3 time points/patient). Derived cytokines were compared with healthy controls and between COVID-19 and sepsis patients, and the associations with prognosis were evaluated. The time to wean off mechanical ventilation (MV) was evaluated only for COVID-19.ResultsIL-6, amphiregulin, and growth differentiation factor (GDF)-15 were associated with disease severity and prognosis in the derivation cohort. In the validation cohort, IL-6 and GDF-15 were elevated in COVID-19 and sepsis on day 1, and the levels of these cytokines were higher in sepsis than in COVID-19. IL-6 and GDF-15 were associated with prognosis in sepsis. Cox proportional hazards model with time as a dependent covariate showed a significant relationship between plasma GDF-15 level and time to wean off MV (hazard ratio, 0.549 [95% confidence level, 0.382–0.789]). The GDF-15 level at ICU admission predicted late recovery.ConclusionGDF-15 and IL-6 derived from proteomics analysis were related with disease severity of COVID-19. Their values were higher in sepsis than in COVID-19 and were associated with prognosis in sepsis. In COVID-19 patients treated in the ICU, GDF-15 was associated with the time to wean off MV and better predicted late recovery.

Background: There is a paucity of information for predicting patient outcomes other than the American Association for the Surgery of Trauma (AAST) renal injury scale. The aim of this study was to evaluate the association between the patient characteristics and outcomes of patients with blunt renal trauma using a nationwide database in Japan. Methods: We performed a retrospective analysis of the Japan Trauma Data Bank (JTDB) from 2004 to 2018. We identified patients with blunt renal trauma by AIS codes converted to AAST grades. We evaluated trends in patient characteristics and management and assessed factors associated with mortality and nephrectomy using a multivariable logistic regression analysis. Results: We identified 3550 patients with blunt renal trauma. Their median age was 43 years and 74.2% were male. Nephrectomy was performed in 3.8%, and the overall mortality rate was 9.5%. We found increasing trends in age and emergency abdominal angiography and decreasing trends in nephrectomy and mortality over the 15-year period. The following factors were associated with mortality: age ≥ 65 years (adjusted OR 3.36); pedestrian accident (adjusted OR 1.94); fall from height (adjusted OR 1.91); shock on arrival (adjusted OR 4.02); concomitant injuries to the head/neck (adjusted OR 3.14), pelvis/lower-extremity (adjusted OR 1.59), liver (adjusted OR 1.68), spleen (adjusted OR 1.45), and gastrointestinal tract (adjusted OR 1.90); AAST grades III-V (adjusted ORs 1.42, 2.16, and 5.55); and emergency abdominal angiography (adjusted OR 0.70). The following factors were associated with nephrectomy: shock on arrival (adjusted OR 1.98), concomitant injuries to the thorax (adjusted OR 0.46) and spleen (adjusted OR 2.07), AAST grades III, IV, and V (adjusted ORs 18.40, 113.89, and 468.17), and emergency abdominal angiography (adjusted OR 0.28). Conclusions: We demonstrated that the AAST grade and emergency angiography were associated with mortality and nephrectomy in blunt renal trauma in the Japanese population.