Introduction: Although various preventive strategies have been advocated, delirium is common in critically ill patients and is associated with increased morbidity, mortality, and long-term adverse effects. The efficacy of a novel delirium prevention bundle in mechanically ventilated critically ill patients was investigated in this study. Methods: In this randomized controlled trial, 50 mechanically ventilated adult patients in a tertiary care medical-surgical intensive care unit (ICU) were randomized to receive either delirium prevention bundle protocol or standard of care protocol. Delirium was assessed daily using the Confusion Assessment Method for the ICU (CAM-ICU) score by an independent investigator up to 28 days or death or discharge. The primary outcome was the incidence of new-onset delirium. Secondary outcomes were duration of mechanical ventilation, ICU length of stay (ICU-LOS), hospital LOS, and other adverse events. Results: There was a 20% reduction in the incidence of delirium in the intervention group (36 vs 56%; p = 0.156). The 28-day mortality (28 vs 24%; p = 0.747), duration of mechanical ventilation (9 vs 12 days; p = 0.281), ICU-LOS (11 vs 12 days; p = 0.221), and hospital LOS (16 vs 20 days; p = 0.062) were similar between the groups. Conclusion: Implementation of delirium prevention bundle does not reduce the incidence of delirium compared to standard of care protocol in mechanically ventilated critically ill patients.

Introduction: World Health Organization proposes severe acute respiratory infection (SARI) case definition for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) surveillance; however, early differentiation between SARI etiologies remains challenging. We aimed to investigate the spectrum and outcome of SARI and compare COVID-19 to non-COVID-19 causes. Patients and methods: A prospective cohort study was conducted between March 15, 2020, to August 15, 2020, at an adult medical emergency in North India. SARI was diagnosed using a “modified” case definition—febrile respiratory symptoms or radiographic evidence of pneumonia or acute respiratory distress syndrome of ≤14 days duration, along with a need for hospitalization and in the absence of an alternative etiology that fully explains the illness. COVID-19 was diagnosed with reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction testing. Results: In total, 95/212 (44.8%) cases had COVID-19. Community-acquired pneumonia (n = 57), exacerbation of chronic lung disease (n = 11), heart failure (n = 11), tropical febrile illnesses (n = 10), and influenza A (n = 5) were common non-COVID-19 causes. No between-group differences were apparent in age >60 years, comorbidities, oxygenation, leukocytosis, lymphopenia, acute physiology and chronic health evaluation (APACHE)-II score, CURB-65 score, and ventilator requirement at 24-hour. Bilateral lung distribution and middle-lower zones involvement in radiography predicted COVID-19. The median hospital stay was longer with COVID-19 (12 versus 5 days, p = 0.000); however, mortality was similar (31.6% versus 28.2%, p = 0.593). Independent mortality predictors were higher mean APACHE II in COVID-19 and early ventilator requirement in non-COVID-19 cases. Conclusions: COVID-19 has similar severity and mortality as non-COVID-19 SARI but requires an extended hospital stay. Including radiography in the SARI definition might improve COVID-19 surveillance.

Introduction: Acute kidney injury (AKI) is defined in terms of serum creatinine (SrCrt) and urine output (UO). AKI occurs in 25% of critically ill patients, which increases the risk of morbidity and mortality. Early diagnosis of AKI is challenging, as utility of biomarkers is limited. This study is the first of its kind to estimate urinary potassium (UrK) excretion and its association with AKI in an Indian intensive care unit (ICU). Aims and objectives: To study the association between UrK excretion and its ability to predict AKI in ICU patients. Material and methods: During this prospective observational study, the patient's urinary indices and renal function tests were measured on day 1 of the ICU admission. UrK excretion and creatinine clearance (CrCl) were calculated from a 2-hour morning urine sample. Association between 2-hour UrK excretion and calculated CrCl and their ability to predict AKI in the subsequent 7 days was evaluated by Kidney Disease Improving Global Outcome (KDIGO)–AKI grading. Results: Hundred patients admitted to ICU with a mean age of 53.59 ± 15.8 years were studied. The mean UrK excretion of 4.39 ± 2.52 was correlated linearly with CrCl and has a better prediction to AKI with the area under the receiver-operating characteristic curve value of 0.809 (CI 0.719–0.899), with a significant p-value (p < 0.05). UrK excretion value of 3.49 on day 1 of ICU admission had 87% sensitivity and 74% specificity in predicting AKI. Thirty-one (31%) developed AKI, of which seven (22.58%) required renal replacement therapy (RRT), with 19% of all-cause mortality. Conclusion: Diagnosis of AKI with traditional methods is not promising. UrK excretion correlates well with CrCl, which can be considered as the simplest accessible marker for predicting AKI in ICUs.

Objectives: “Surviving Sepsis Campaign: International Guidelines for Management of Sepsis and Septic Shock: 2016” provides guidelines in regard to prompt management and resuscitation of sepsis or septic shock. The study is aimed to assess the robustness of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that formulate these guidelines in terms of fragility index and reverse fragility index. Method: RCTs that contributed to these guidelines having parallel two-group design, 1:1 allocation ratio, and at least one dichotomous outcome were included in the study. The median fragility index was calculated for RCTs with significant statistical outcomes, whereas the median reverse fragility index was calculated for RCTs with nonsignificant statistical results. Results: Hundred RCTs that met the inclusion criteria were analyzed. The median fragility index was 5.5 [95% confidence interval (CI) 1–30] and median reverse fragility index was 13 (95% CI 12.07–16.8) at a p value of 0.05. The median reverse fragility index was 16 (95% CI 10–26) at a p value of 0.01. Most of the RCTs included in this analysis were of good quality, having a median Jadad score of 6. Conclusion: This analysis found that the surviving sepsis guidelines were based on highly robust RCTs with statistically insignificant results and on some moderately robust RCTs with statistically significant results. RCTs with statistically insignificant results were more robust than RCTs with statistically significant results in regard to these guidelines. Highlights: The study assessed the robustness of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that were used to formulate surviving sepsis guidelines. Most RCTs showed statistically nonsignificant results. RCTs with statistically significant results were moderately fragile whereas RCTs with nonsignificant results were more robust.

Introduction: Carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) infections have a major effect on mortality as well as healthcare cost. Intensive care units (ICUs) in India, the epicenters for multidrug-resistant organisms, are facing a “postantibiotic era” because of very limited treatment options. A latest beta-lactam/beta-lactamase inhibitor ceftazidime–avibactam (CZA) new has a broad-spectrum antibacterial activity. CZA inhibits class-A and class-C beta-lactamases (as well Klebsiella pneumoniae carbapenemase (KPC)), along with some class-D carbapenems such as OXA-48-like enzymes that are seen in Enterobacteriaceae has recently become available. The current study aimed to assess and present the clinical response and patient outcome with infections due to CRE when treated with CZA alone or in combination with other drugs. Materials and methods: This retrospective study reviews the experience recorded and analyzed at two tertiary care centers including only adult patients with CRE infection who had received CZA alone or in combination with other antibiotics over a period between February 2019 and January 2020. Results: In the period from February 2019 to January 2020, 119 culture-confirmed CRE isolates were tested for Xpert Carba-R. The predominant genetic mechanism was a combination of NDM+OXA-48 in 45/119 (37.81%). Total 40/57 patients received CZA+aztreonam alone or in combination with other drugs with an overall cure rate of 77.5% while the rest 17 received CZA alone in combination with the cure rate of 82.35%. 41/57 (71.92%) patients were in ICU. Conclusion: With overall mortality of 21%, these data suggest that CZA is a viable option for patients with CRE infections. To our knowledge, this is the first Indian study reporting CZA data in CRE infections.

Background: This study was pointed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of valerian and lemon balm additional to the quetiapine in critically ill patients with delirium and agitation. Methods: We conducted a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study. Fifty-three adult intensive care unit (ICU) patients (according to ICU Confusion Assessment Method scores) who were treated for delirium received quetiapine and Neurogol syrup (a combination of valerian and lemon balm) or placebo 5 mL every 12 hours for five consecutive days. Improvement in agitation according to the Richmond Sedation and Restlessness Scale was considered the main outcome. Results: The trial was completed for 53 patients (27 in the treatment group and 26 in the placebo group). The baseline characteristics between the groups were similar. In the treatment group, the number of agitated patients was significantly reduced and the difference was statistically significant (p = 0.000). Compared with the placebo group, the length of ICU stay in the treatment group was significantly reduced (p = 0.001). The Glasgow Coma Scale improved significantly at the end of day 5 (p = 0.04). There was no statistical difference in the improvement of delirium between the study groups (p = 0.14). Neurogol syrup was well tolerated. Conclusion: The addition of Neurogol to quetiapine (a combination of valerian and lemon balm) can reduce agitation and shorten the length of stay in the ICU without adverse effects. Clearly, more research is still needed to investigate the role of herbal medicines in ICUs and their efficacy and safety.

Background: Gargling had been reported to have some roles in the prevention and treatment of respiratory tract infections. The purpose of this study was to assess the ability of regular gargling using 7.5% sodium bicarbonate to eliminate SARS-CoV-2 in the oropharynx and nasopharynx. Materials and methods: This pilot, open-labeled, nonrandomized, parallel single-center study. The effect of 30 seconds, three times per day gargling using 7.5% sodium bicarbonate solution—25 mL on SARS-CoV-2 viral clearance among coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) patients in a dedicated COVID hospital at All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Patna, Bihar, India. We monitored the progress on by days 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7 by observing variables like clinical category, P/F ratio, neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio (NLR) ratio, platelet count, ferritin, lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), CRP, procalcitonin, d-dimer, INR, APTT, and sequential organ function assessment (SOFA) score. We have also done repeat reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) testing on day 5 and day 7. Results: A total of 10 patients (7 males and 3 females) were included in our study after confirmed COVID positivity. The age range was from 30 to 61 years. Based on clinical severity and P/F ratio, 7 patients were included in the milder group as their ratio was more than 200 and the rest 3 patients were included in the moderate group as P/F ratio was less than 200. Two respondents had comorbidities, which were non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and ovarian carcinoma. Viral clearance was achieved at day 7 in 3 of 10 patients. However, the analysis of using 7.5% sodium bicarbonate 25 mL gargle statistically showed nonsignificant p-value for all of our studied variables. However, the PCR results were negative on 24 hours apart, i.e., on day 5 and day 7. Conclusions: This is only a preliminary study which showed that gargling with 7.5% sodium bicarbonate may not be effective in achieving early SARS-CoV-2 viral clearance among mild COVID-19 patients. However, still larger studies are required to ascertain the benefit of gargling for different stages of COVID-19 patients with keeping in mind the important variables suggestive of viremia clearance.

Background: Sepsis is the main cause of death in infectious diseases that can be caused by gram-negative or gram-positive bacteria. Definitive therapy for sepsis is antibiotics, depending on blood culture results even though it takes time for bacterial growth. Neutrophil–lymphocyte count ratio (NLCR) is a laboratory parameter that can predict bacterial infection in sepsis patients. NLCR is time-and-cost-effective and easy-to-use in daily practice, in sepsis patients infected with gram-negative, gram-positive, and no bacterial growth based on blood culture results. Materials and methods: This was a comparative study of NLCR and the result of blood culture from sepsis patients. Subjects were obtained from the medical records of patients admitted to our hospital from January 2019 to May 2019. Patients aged over 18 years who were diagnosed with sepsis and had blood culture information were included. Patients with hematological disorder and malignancy were excluded. Sepsis data consisted of gender, age, source of infection, comorbidity, NLCR, and blood culture results. Results: Ninety-four sepsis subjects met the inclusion criteria, and fifty-one subjects (54.25%)—33 subjects (35.10%) with gram-negative bacterial infection and 18 subjects (19.15%) with gram-positive bacterial infection—were included in the analysis due to the completeness of the data. The median NLCR (IQR) was 17.8 (14.3–30.7) in gram-negative, 31.5 (26.3–95.0) in gram-positive, and 22.8 (15.67–22.75) in no bacterial growth (p = 0.001). Conclusion: NLCR can distinguish gram-negative and gram-positive bacterial infections. It also can predict the possibility of pathogenic bacteria that cause sepsis.

Background: The definition of acute kidney injury (AKI), based on serum creatinine and urine output, bears significant limitations in intensive care units (ICUs). Serum creatinine has significant lag-time as it needs to be accumulated and stabilized at a new level whereas urine output is affected by diuresis, antidiuresis, and antinatriuresis. Direct measurement of creatinine clearance (CrCl_direct = urine creatinine × urine flow rate/serum creatinine) over a short interval (3–6 hours) was explored to identify patients with AKI. Materials and methods: We reanalyzed a previous published dataset. We included 11 patients who had serial daily urine collections over 0 to 3 days of stay in ICU and baseline (day -1) serum creatinine levels. Result: The ratio of CrCl_direct on day 0 to baseline creatinine clearance predicted the progression of AKI over the subsequent 1 to 3 days of ICU stay [area under receiver operating characteristic curve = 0.933 and 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.780–1.000]. Discussion: CrCl_direct over a short interval may be an alternative marker of kidney function. Future studies may explore its use to identify patients with AKI who may benefit from early renal replacement therapy.

Aim and objective: To study the profile, indications, related complications, and predictors of decannulation and mortality in patients who underwent tracheostomy in the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU). Materials and methods: Retrospective analysis of prospectively collected data of tracheostomies was done on patients admitted at PICU. Demographics, primary diagnosis, indication of tracheostomy, and durations of endotracheal intubation, mechanical ventilation, and tracheostomy cannulation were recorded. The indication was recorded in one of the four categories—upper airway obstruction (UAO), central neurological impairment (CNI), prolonged mechanical ventilation, and peripheral neuromuscular disorders). Results: Two hundred ninety cases were analyzed. UAO (42%) and CNI (48.2%) were main indications in the halves of the study period, respectively. Decannulation was successful in 188 (64.8%) patients. Seventy-seven percentage UAO patients were decannulated successfully [OR (odds ratio); 95% CI (confidence interval), 2.647; 1.182–5.924, p = 0.018]. Age <1 year (0.378; 0.187–0.764; p = 0.007), nontraumatic, noninfectious central neurological diseases (0.398; 0.186–0.855; p = 0.018), and malignancy (0.078; 0.021–0.298; p <0.001), durations of posttracheostomy ventilation (0.937; 0.893–0.983; p = 0.008), and stay in the PICU (0.989; 0.979–0.999; p = 0.029) were predictors of unsuccessful decannulation. There were 91 (31.4%) deaths. Age <1 year (2.39 (1.13–5.05; p = 0.02), malignancy (17.55; 4.10–75.11; p <0.001), durations of posttracheostomy ventilation (1.06; 1.006–1.10; p = 0.028), and hospital stay (1.007; 1.0–1.013; p = 0.043) were independent predictors of mortality. Indication of UAO favored survivor (0.24; 0.09–0.57; p <0.001). Conclusion: The indications for tracheostomy in children had changed over the years. Infancy, primary diagnosis, length of posttracheostomy ventilation, and stay in the PICU and hospital were independent predictors of decannulation and mortality. What This Adds Similar to developed countries, the age at the time of tracheostomy and indication are changing. Inability to decannulate and mortality were associated with the age of a child at the time of tracheostomy, indication, medical diagnosis, and duration of postprocedure mechanical ventilation and stay in the hospital.

Aim and objective: Pediatric acute liver failure (PALF) is a life-threatening condition. Extracorporeal support has been applied for toxic metabolite clearance and serves as a bridging therapy to liver transplantation (LT) or to the regeneration of the liver, but evidence for treatment approaches is still lacking in the pediatric population. We aim to report our experience on therapeutic plasma exchange with high-volume continuous renal replacement therapy (TPE + HV-CRRT) as a promising supportive treatment for PALF. Materials and methods: A total of eight PALF cases aged 9 months to 14 years, weighing 10–50 kg., who were admitted to PICU King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital, Thailand and treated with TPE + HV-CRRT from January 2016 to September 2019 were reviewed. Patient demographic data, indications, technical aspects, and clinical outcomes were recorded. Results: All patients who underwent TPE + HV-CRRT showed clinical improvement regarding serum bilirubin levels and coagulation studies after the therapy. Complications from the therapy were hemodynamic instability, symptomatic fluid overload, and bleeding from catheter sites. Among these, 6 (75%) patients survived with 4 (50%) successful LTs and 2 (25%) spontaneous recovery. Two children (25%) died while on the transplantation list. Conclusion: TPE + HV-CRRT can be used safely as a bridging therapy in children with PALF. As opposed to the adult population, higher volume of TPE or higher blood flow rate in pediatric patients might associate with hemodynamic instability during the procedure.

As the novel coronavirus-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic spreads across the world, early recognition of the spectrum of symptoms and patterns of clinical presentation is crucial for optimal management. Emerging evidence shows that COVID-19 leads to a prothrombotic state and its association with pulmonary thromboembolism is well established. However, clinicians and the vascular community, in particular, should watch out for the nonpulmonary targets of this lethal virus as the failure to do so could give rise to disastrous consequences. The significance of raised D-dimer levels, whether it translates into thrombotic events for all patients and the need for universal oral anticoagulation postdischarge are issues that need urgent answers. We report a case series of five patients with thrombosis involving nonpulmonary sites.

We report a case of an acquired Bartter-like syndrome (BLS) after 3 days of treatment initiation and improved after discontinuation of colistin therapy in pediatric intensive care unit. A 2-month-old girl with spinal muscular atrophy type 1 who had respiratory distress received colistin therapy with a dose of 5 mg/kg/day for Acinetobacter baumannii complex isolation from endotracheal aspirate on the 12th day follow-up. Polyuria (6 mL/kg/hour) in the presence of normal blood pressure and hypokalemic metabolic alkalosis were developed on the 3rd day of colistin treatment. Colistin was stopped on the 4th day, and 2 days after discontinuation of colistin, polyuria improved dramatically. Her metabolic alkalosis and hypokalemia discontinued after 2 and 4 days, respectively. There are very few reports about colistin-induced BLS. The onset of polyuria, hypokalemia, and metabolic alkalosis during treatment with colistin and resolution after interruption suggest a causative relationship.