Inadequate initial treatment and delayed hemodynamic stabilization (HDS) may be associated with increased risk of death in severe sepsis patients.

Introduction: We have almost no information concerning the value of inferior vena cava (IVC) respiratory variations in spontaneously breathing ICU patients (SBP) to predict fluid responsiveness. Methods: SBP with clinical fluid need were included prospectively in the study. Echocardiography and Doppler ultrasound were used to record the aortic velocity-time integral (VTI), stroke volume (SV), cardiac output (CO) and IVC collapsibility index (cIVC) ((maximum diameter (IVCmax)– minimum diameter (IVCmin))/ IVCmax) at baseline, after a passive leg-raising maneuver (PLR) and after 500 ml of saline infusion. Results: Fifty-nine patients (30 males and 29 females; 57 ± 18 years-old) were included in the study. Of these, 29 (49 %) were considered to be responders (≥10 % increase in CO after fluid infusion). There were no significant differences between responders and nonresponders at baseline, except for a higher aortic VTI in nonresponders (16 cm vs. 19 cm, p = 0.03). Responders had a lower baseline IVCmin than nonresponders (11 ± 5 mm vs. 14 ± 5 mm, p = 0.04) and more marked IVC variations (cIVC: 35 ± 16 vs. 27 ± 10 %, p = 0.04). Prediction of fluid-responsiveness using cIVC and IVCmax was low (area under the curve for cIVC at baseline 0.62 ± 0.07; 95 %, CI 0.49-0.74 and for IVCmax at baseline 0.62 ± 0.07; 95 % CI 0.49-0.75). In contrast, IVC respiratory variations >42 % in SBP demonstrated a high specificity (97 %) and a positive predictive value (90 %) to predict an increase in CO after fluid infusion. Conclusions: In SBP with suspected hypovolemia, vena cava size and respiratory variability do not predict fluid responsiveness. In contrast, a cIVC >42 % may predict an increase in CO after fluid infusion.

Cardiac output (CO) monitoring is a valuable tool for the diagnosis and management of critically ill patients. In the critical care setting, few studies have evaluated the level of agreement between CO estimated by transthoracic echocardiography (CO-TTE) and that measured by the reference method, pulmonary artery catheter (CO-PAC). The objective of the present study was to evaluate the precision and accuracy of CO-TTE relative to CO-PAC and the ability of transthoracic echocardiography to track variations in CO, in critically ill mechanically ventilated patients. Thirty-eight mechanically ventilated patients fitted with a PAC were included in a prospective observational study performed in a 16-bed university hospital ICU. CO-PAC was measured via intermittent thermodilution. Simultaneously, a second investigator used standard-view TTE to estimate CO-TTE as the product of stroke volume and the heart rate obtained during the measurement of the subaortic velocity time integral. Sixty-four pairs of CO-PAC and CO-TTE measurements were compared. The two measurements were significantly correlated (r = 0.95; p < 0.0001). The median bias was 0.2 L/min, the limits of agreement (LOAs) were –1.3 and 1.8 L/min, and the percentage error was 25%. The precision was 8% for CO-PAC and 9% for CO-TTE. Twenty-six pairs of ΔCO measurements were compared. There was a significant correlation between ΔCO-PAC and ΔCO-TTE (r = 0.92; p < 0.0001). The median bias was –0.1 L/min and the LOAs were –1.3 and +1.2 L/min. With a 15% exclusion zone, the four-quadrant plot had a concordance rate of 94%. With a 0.5 L/min exclusion zone, the polar plot had a mean polar angle of 1.0° and a percentage error LOAs of –26.8 to 28.8°. The concordance rate was 100% between 30 and –30°. When using CO-TTE to detect an increase in ΔCO-PAC of more than 10%, the area under the receiving operating characteristic curve (95% CI) was 0.82 (0.62–0.94) (p < 0.001). A ΔCO-TTE of more than 8% yielded a sensitivity of 88% and specificity of 66% for detecting a ΔCO-PAC of more than 10%. In critically ill mechanically ventilated patients, CO-TTE is an accurate and precise method for estimating CO. Furthermore, CO-TTE can accurately track variations in CO.

Introduction: Based on previously published case reports demonstrating dynamic left intraventricular obstruction (IVO) triggered by hypovolemia or catecholamines, this study aimed to establish: (1) IVO occurrence in septic shock patients; (2) correlation between the intraventricular gradient and volume status and fluid responsiveness; and (3) mortality rate.Method: We prospectively analyzed patients with septic shock admitted to a general ICU over a 28-month period who presented Doppler signs of IVO. Clinical characteristics and hemodynamic parameters as well as echocardiographic data regarding left ventricular function, size, and calculated mass, and left ventricular outflow Doppler pattern and velocity before and after fluid infusions were recorded.Results: During the study period, 218 patients with septic shock were admitted to our ICU. IVO was observed in 47 (22 %) patients. Mortality rate at 28 days was found to be higher in patients with than in patients without IVO (55 % versus 33 %,p< 0.01). Small, hypercontractile left ventricles (end-diastolic left ventricular surface 4.7 ± 2.1 cm²/m²and ejection fraction 82 ± 12 %), and frequent pseudohypertrophy were found in these patients. A rise ≥12 % in stroke index was found in 87 % of patients with IVO, with a drop of 47 % in IVO after fluid infusion.Conclusion: Left IVO is a frequent event in septic shock patients with an important correlation with fluid responsiveness. The mortality rate was found to be higher in these patients in comparison with patients without obstruction.

Pneumonia is a dreaded complication of varicella-zoster virus (VZV) infection in adults; however, the data are limited. Our objective was to investigate the clinical features, management, and outcomes of critically ill patients with VZV-related community-acquired pneumonia (VZV-CAP). This was an observational study of patients with VZV-CAP admitted to 29 intensive care units (ICUs) from January 1996 to January 2015. One hundred and two patients with VZV-CAP were included. Patients were young (age 39 years (interquartile range 32–51)) and 53 (52%) were immunocompromised. Time since respiratory symptom onset was 2 (1–3) days. There was a seasonal distribution of the disease, with more cases during spring and winter time. All but four patients presented with typical skin rash on ICU admission. Half the patients received mechanical ventilation within 1 (1–2) day following ICU admission (the ratio of arterial oxygen partial pressure to fractional inspired oxygen (PaO2/FiO2) = 150 (80–284), 80% with acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS)). Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) score on day 1 (odds ratio (OR) 1.90 (1.33–2.70); p < 0.001), oxygen flow at ICU admission (OR 1.25 (1.08–1.45); p = 0.004), and early bacterial co-infection (OR 14.94 (2.00–111.8); p = 0.009) were independently associated with the need for mechanical ventilation. Duration of mechanical ventilation was 14 (7–21) days. ICU and hospital mortality rates were 17% and 24%, respectively. All patients were treated with aciclovir and 10 received adjunctive therapy with steroids. Compared to 60 matched steroid-free controls, patients treated with steroids had a longer mechanical ventilation duration, ICU length of stay, and a similar hospital mortality, but experienced more ICU-acquired infections. Severe VZV-CAP is responsible for an acute pulmonary involvement associated with a significant morbidity and mortality. Steroid therapy did not influence mortality, but increased the risk of superinfection.

Rationale: Invasive tracheobronchial aspergillosis (ITBA) is an uncommon but severe clinical form of invasive pulmonary aspergillosis in which the fungal infection is entirely or predominantly confined to the tracheobronchial tree. Objectives: To analyze the diagnostic and prognostic differences between tracheobronchial aspergillosis and pulmonary aspergillosis without tracheobronchial lesions among patients admitted to the ICU with severe influenza. Methods: This retrospective, observational study included critically ill patients with influenza associated with pulmonary aspergillosis from three hospital ICUs between 2010 and 2019. Patient characteristics and clinical and mycologic data at admission and during ICU stay were collected in a database to evaluate variables in the two groups. Measurements and Main Results: Thirty-five patients admitted to the ICU with severe influenza and pulmonary aspergillosis were included. Ten patients were included in the group with ITBA (n = 10 of 35; 28.6%), and 25 patients were included in the group without ITBA. The group with ITBA comprised more patients with active smoking, diabetes mellitus, and higher severity scores (Simplified Acute Physiology Score II). Ninety-day mortality rates in the groups with and without ITBA were 90% and 44%, respectively (P = 0.02). Moreover, significantly higher serum 1,3-β-d -glucan and galactomannan and BAL fluid galactomannan concentrations were observed in the group with ITBA compared with the group without ITBA (P < 0.0001, P = 0.003, and P = 0.008, respectively). Conclusions: ITBA was associated with higher severity scores, mortality, and serum and BAL fluid galactomannan and 1,3-β-d-glucan concentrations than invasive pulmonary aspergillosis without tracheobronchial lesions. ITBA should be systematically researched by bronchoscopic examination in ICU patients with concomitant pulmonary aspergillosis and influenza. Clinical trial registered with www.clinicaltrials.gov (NCT 04077697).