Background: The incidence of sepsis can be estimated between 250 and 500 cases/100.000 people per year and is responsible for up to 6% of total hospital admissions. Identified as one of the most relevant global health problems, sepsis is the condition that generates the highest costs in the healthcare system. Important changes in the management of septic patients have been included in recent years; however, there is no information about how changes in the management of sepsis-associated organ failure have contributed to reduce mortality. Methods: A retrospective analysis was conducted from hospital discharge records from the Minimum Basic Data Set Acute-Care Hospitals (CMBD-HA in Catalan language) for the Catalan Health System (CatSalut). CMBD-HA is a mandatory population-based register of admissions to all public and private acute-care hospitals in Catalonia. Sepsis was defined by the presence of infection and at least one organ dysfunction. Patients hospitalized with sepsis were detected, according ICD-9-CM (since 2005 to 2017) and ICD-10-CM (2018 and 2019) codes used to identify acute organ dysfunction and infectious processes. Results: Of 11.916.974 discharges from all acute-care hospitals during the study period (2005–2019), 296.554 had sepsis (2.49%). The mean annual sepsis incidence in the population was 264.1 per 100.000 inhabitants/year, and it increased every year, going from 144.5 in 2005 to 410.1 in 2019. Multiorgan failure was present in 21.9% and bacteremia in 26.3% of cases. Renal was the most frequent organ failure (56.8%), followed by cardiovascular (24.2%). Hospital mortality during the study period was 19.5%, but decreases continuously from 25.7% in 2005 to 17.9% in 2019 (p < 0.0001). The most important reduction in mortality was observed in cases with cardiovascular failure (from 47.3% in 2005 to 31.2% in 2019) (p < 0.0001). In the same way, mean mortality related to renal and respiratory failure in sepsis was decreased in last years (p < 0.0001). Conclusions: The incidence of sepsis has been increasing in recent years in our country. However, hospital mortality has been significantly reduced. In septic patients, all organ failures except liver have shown a statistically significant reduction on associated mortality, with cardiovascular failure as the most relevant.
Aim: Adapting “escape rooms” for educational purposes is an innovative teaching method. The aim of this study was to ascertain the degree of learning of the residents. A secondary objective was to determine their degree of satisfaction. Methods: A prospective, observational study took place in October 2019. A sepsis-based escape room was designed and carried out. A mix of paediatric medical residents and paediatric nursing residents were enrolled. A prior knowledge test was carried out, which was repeated right at the end of the escape room and then again three months later. Furthermore, all participants completed an anonymous post-study survey. Results: We enrolled 48 residents, 79.2% of whom were women. The mean score for the pre-escape room exam was 7.85/9 (SD 1.65), that for the post-escape room exam was 8.75/9 (SD 0.53), and for the exam three months later, it was 8.30/9 (SD 0.94). Among the participants, 18.8% did not manage to leave before the established 60 min time limit. The results of the satisfaction survey showed high participant satisfaction. Conclusions: The escape room proved to be a valuable educational game that increased students’ knowledge of sepsis management and showed a positive overall perceived value among the participants.
Purpose: Respiratory syncytial virus-positive bronchiolitis continues to be the main diagnosis prompting transportation in children younger than one year of age. It represents approximately 15–20% of all services performed by a specialized pediatric transport team. In October 2023, an immunization program with nirsevimab, a monoclonal antibody against RSV, was started in Spain. The purpose of the present study is to describe how nirsevimab affects the rates of bronchiolitis managed by a pediatric team specialized in critical patient transport. Secondary objectives included describing and comparing the clinical aspects of the two cohorts—pre-nirsevimab (pre-n) and post-nirsevimab (post-n)—to quantify how immunization has modified the clinical phenotype of bronchiolitis. Methods: This is a descriptive and observational study. Patients with bronchiolitis transported by a specialized pediatric transport team between September 2021 and August 2025 were included. Demographic, clinical, and microbiological data were collected. The pre-n and post-n periods were compared. Results: From a total of 2347 interfacility transports conducted by the unit between 2021 and 2025, 463 (19.7%) involved bronchiolitis patients, all of whom were recruited: 307 in the pre-n period and 156 in the post-n. The median age was 2.5 months (IQR 1.3–5.7), and 55% were male. There was a significant decrease in bronchiolitis cases that required specialized transport between the two periods: 28.2% (307/1089) pre-n vs. 12.4% (156/1258) post-n (p < 0.001). RSV detection also declined (74.3% vs. 47.4%, p < 0.001), while other viruses increased significantly in the post-n period, including rhinovirus, metapneumovirus and bocavirus. Age at admission showed statistically significant differences across the two periods (2.2 vs. 3.4 months, p < 0.001). There were no differences in severity between the two periods in terms of respiratory and inotropic support and length of stay. No mortality was reported. Conclusions: Universal nirsevimab immunization was associated with a marked reduction in pediatric transports for bronchiolitis, particularly RSV-related cases, without modifying disease severity among those requiring transfer.