Assessment of plasma and red cell trace element concentrations, disease severity, and outcome in patients with critical illness

Increased plasma selenium is associated with better outcomes in children with systemic inflammation

“…These findings were similar to those of a previous study in which plasma selenium concentrations slightly increased with the duration of stay in the ICU in adult patients, although they remained severely low on day 7 of ICU stay [25]. Low plasma selenium concentrations also have been reported in children with critical illnesses [12][13][14].…”

“…We could offer possible explanations for the increase in selenium concentrations in our patients during the follow-up. Although low plasma selenium concentrations in ICU patients can be explained, in part, by the systemic inflammatory response [25], the variation in plasma selenium from admission to day 5 was not related to changes in CRP nor to serum albumin concentrations in our patients. The intake of selenium by enteral feeding was associated with increasing plasma selenium during the follow-up instead.…”

“…Moreover, plasma selenium concentrations decrease during the acute-phase response, likely due to endothelial injury leading to transcapillary escape of selenium proteins [9,27]. Although reflecting short-term selenium status and responding rapidly to selenium supplementation, it may not accurately reflect tissue selenium content or seleno-enzyme activity in the presence of systemic inflammation [25,27]. Hence, the magnitude of the inflammatory response and nutritional status should be considered when interpreting plasma selenium concentrations in patients with systemic inflammation.…”

Hypermetabolism in the Initial Phase of Intensive Care Is Related to a Poor Outcome in Severe Sepsis Patients

“…In agreement with previous studies [27][28][29] , we found high CRP levels in the study patients, particularly in the hypermetabolic group. This may also be a reflection of more serious underlying conditions and severe systemic inflammation in the non-survivor group, as indicated by the relatively higher APACHE II and SOFA scores.…”

“…The post-traumatic catabolic state leads to erosion of the functional and structural components of the body, which undoubtedly contributes to prolonging recovery and delaying the weaning of the patients from mechanical ventilation and their discharge from the hospital [24] . Hypermetabolism resulting from inflammatory response is a complicated immune system-mediated process, which is affected by necrotic tissue disruption, the entry of the causative pathogenic microorganism or its toxins into the bloodstream [27] , and the body's response such as release of hormones and cytokines [28] .…”