Outcome prediction is crucial for out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) survivors. Several attempts have been made to use the bispectral index (BIS) for this purpose. We aimed to investigate the prognostic power of the BIS during the early stage of targeted temperature management (TTM) after OHCA. From Jan 2014 to Feb 2017, the BIS was determined in OHCA patients as soon as possible after the start of TTM. We injected a neuro-muscular blocking agent and recoded the BIS value and the time when the electromyographic (EMG) factor reached zero. The primary outcome was the cerebral performance category scale (CPC) score at 6 months, and a poor outcome was defined as a CPC score of 3, 4, or 5. The exclusion criteria were age under 18 years, traumatic cardiac arrest, and BIS data with a non-zero EMG factor. Sixty-five patients were included in this study. Good outcomes were observed for 16 patients (24.6%), and poor outcomes were observed for 49 patients (75.4%). The mean time of BIS recording was 2.3 ± 1.0 h after return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC). The mean BIS values of the good outcome and poor outcome groups were 35.6 ± 13.1 and 5.5 ± 9.2, respectively (p < 0.001). The area under the curve was 0.961. Use of a cut-off value of 20.5 to predict a good outcome yielded a sensitivity of 87.5% and specificity of 93.9%. Use of a cut-off value of 10.5 to predict a poor outcome yielded a sensitivity of 87.8% and specificity of 100%. With the help of BIS, physicians could predict that a patient who has BIS value over 20.5 after ROSC could have a big chance to get good neurological outcome in less than three hours.

The gray-to-white matter ratio (GWR) has been used to identify brain damage in comatose patients after cardiac arrest. However, Hounsfield units (HUs), the measurement of brain density on computed tomography (CT) images, may vary depending on the machine type or parameter. Therefore, differences in CT scanners may affect the GWR in post-cardiac arrest patients. We performed a retrospective study on comatose post-cardiac arrest patients who visited the hospital from 2007 to 2017. Two CT, Lightspeed and SOMATOM, scanners were used. Two observers independently measured the HUs of the caudate nucleus, putamen, posterior internal capsule, and corpus callosum using regions of interest. We compared the GWR calculated from the HUs measured at different CT scanners. The analysis of different scanners showed statistically significant differences in the measured HUs and GWR. The HUs and GWR of Lightspeed were measured lower than SOMATOM. The difference between the two CT scanners was also evident in groups divided by neurological prognosis. The area under the curve of the receiver operating characteristic curve to predict poor outcomes of Lightspeed was 0.798, and the cut-off value for 100% specificity was 1.172. The SOMATOM was 0.855, and the cut-off value was 1.269. The difference in scanners affects measurements and performance characteristics of the GWR in post-cardiac arrest patients. Therefore, when applying the results of the GWR study to clinical practice, reference values for each device should be presented, and an integrated plan should be prepared.

Conflicting results regarding sex-based differences in the outcomes of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) patients have been reported. We aimed to evaluate the association between sex and neurological outcome as well as various in-hospital process in OHCA patients treated with targeted temperature management. We retrospectively analyzed a prospective registry data collected between October 2015 and December 2018. To evaluate the effect of sex on patient outcomes, we created various multivariable logistic regression models. When the results were adjusted using resuscitation variables and in-hospital variables, there was no significant difference (OR = 1.22, 95% CI: 0.85–1.74; OR = 1.13, 95 CI: 0.76–1.68, respectively). Regarding the in-hospital course, the daily total SOFA score was similar in both sexes, whereas cardiovascular scores were higher in women on days 2 and 3. The adjusted effect of sex was not associated with the clinician’s decision to perform early cardiac interventions, except for those men that had more extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (OR = 2.51, 95% CI: 1.11–5.66). The findings seems that men had more favorable 6-month neurological outcomes. However, after adjusting for confounders, there was no difference between the sexes. The results regarding in-hospital course were similar in men and women.

The occurrence of a critical event during a urinary tract infection (UTI) can have a significant impact on mortality. This study aimed to investigate the association between the skeletal muscle index (SMI) and critical events in patients with a UTI. From April 2019 to March 2022, a total of 478 patients who met the diagnostic criteria of a UTI and underwent an abdominal CT were included in this study. Multivariate binary logistic regression analysis was used to assess independent predictors of critical events. The primary outcome was any critical event, defined as the initiation of dialysis, invasive ventilation, initiation of vasoactive medications, cardiac arrest, or death. The UTI patients were divided into two groups: those with a low SMI (n = 93) and those with a high SMI (n = 385). In multivariate analysis, a low SMI, diabetes mellitus, altered mentality, lactate levels, and creatinine levels were identified as significant predictors of critical events. A low SMI is an independent factor associated with the occurrence of critical events in UTI patients during hospitalization. Patients with a low SMI, indicating muscle wasting, may have less resilience to infections and a higher risk of experiencing severe complications. Considering the SMI along with other clinical factors can help health care providers assess and manage UTI patients.