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Biomedical subjects

Jean-François Timsit

Publications and source records attributed to Jean-François Timsit.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

Tracheostomy does not improve the outcome of patients requiring prolonged mechanical ventilation: a propensity analysis.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the association between the performance of a tracheostomy and intensive care unit and postintensive care unit mortality, controlling for treatment selection bias and confounding variables. DESIGN: Prospective, observational, cohort study. SETTING: Twelve French medical or surgical intensive care units. PATIENTS: Unselected patients requiring mechanical ventilation for > or =48 hrs enrolled between 1997 and 2004. INTERVENTIONS: None. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Two models of propensity scores for tracheostomy were built using multivariate logistic regression. After matching on these propensity scores, the association of tracheostomy with outcomes was assessed using multivariate conditional logistic regression. Results obtained with the two models were compared. Of the 2,186 patients included, 177 (8.1%) received a tracheostomy. Both models led to similar results. Tracheostomy did not improve intensive care unit survival (model 1: odds ratio, 0.94; 95% confidence interval, 0.63-1.39; p = .74; model 2: odds ratio, 1.12; 95% confidence interval, 0.75-1.67; p = .59). There was no difference whether tracheostomy was performed early (within 7 days of ventilation) or late (after 7 days of ventilation). In patients discharged free from mechanical ventilation, tracheostomy was associated with increased postintensive care unit mortality when the tracheostomy tube was left in place (model 1: odds ratio, 3.73; 95% confidence interval, 1.41-9.83; p = .008; model 2: odds ratio, 4.63; 95% confidence interval, 1.68-12.72, p = .003). CONCLUSIONS: Tracheostomy does not seem to reduce intensive care unit mortality when performed in unselected patients but may represent a burden after intensive care unit discharge.

APACHE↗

Decision-making process, outcome, and 1-year quality of life of octogenarians referred for intensive care unit admission.

OBJECTIVE: To describe triage decisions and subsequent outcomes in octogenarians referred to an ICU. DESIGN AND SETTING: Prospective observational study in the medical ICU in a tertiary nonuniversity hospital. PARTICIPANTS: Cohort of 180 patients aged 80 years or over who were triaged for admission. MEASUREMENTS: Age, underlying diseases, admission diagnoses, Mortality Probability Model score, and mortality were recorded. Self-sufficiency (Katz Index of Activities of Daily Living) and quality of life (modified Perceived Quality of Life scale and Nottingham Health Profile) were measured 1year after triage. RESULTS: In 132 patients (73.3%) ICU admission was refused, including 79 (43.8%) considered too sick to benefit. Factors independently associated with refusal were nonsurgical status, age older than 85 years, and full unit. Greater self-sufficiency was associated with ICU admission. Hospital mortality was 30/48 (62.5%), 56/79 (70.8%), 9/51 (17.6%), and 0/2 in the admitted, too sick to benefit, too well to benefit, and family/patient refusal groups, respectively; 1-year mortality was 34/48 (70.8%), 69/79 (87.3%), 24/51 (47%), and 0/2, respectively. Self-sufficiency was unchanged by ICU stay. Quality of life (known in only 28 patients) was significantly poorer for isolation, emotional, and mobility domains compared to the French general population matched on sex and age. CONCLUSIONS: More than two-thirds of patients aged over 80 years referred to our ICU were denied admission. One year later self-sufficiency was not modified and quality of life was poorer than in the general population. These results indicate a need to discuss patient preferences before triage decisions.

Aged, 80 and over↗

Pneumothorax in the intensive care unit: incidence, risk factors, and outcome.

BACKGROUND: The risk factors and outcomes of critically ill patients with iatrogenic pneumothorax (IP) have not been studied in a large unselected intensive care unit (ICU) population. METHODS: The authors studied a prospective cohort of adults admitted for more than 24 h. Data were collected at ICU admission and daily by senior physicians until ICU discharge. Risk factors for IP were identified in the entire cohort. A matched nested case-control study was used to evaluate the excess risk of IP in decedents. RESULTS: Of the 3,499 patients, 69 with pneumothorax before ICU admission were excluded. Of the remaining 3,430 patients, 94 experienced IP within 30 days (42 due to barotrauma and 52 due to invasive procedures). The cumulative incidence of IP was 1.4% (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.0-1.8) on day 5 and 3.0% (95% CI, 2.4-3.6) on day 30. Risk factors for IP (hazard ratio [95% CI]) were body weight less than 80 kg (2.4 [1.3-4.2]), history of adult immunodeficiency syndrome (2.8 [1.2-6.4]), diagnosis of acute respiratory distress syndrome (5.3 [2.6-11]) or cardiogenic pulmonary edema at admission (2.0 [1.1-3.6]), central vein or pulmonary artery catheter insertion (1.7 [1.0-2.7]), and use of inotropic agents during the first 24 h (2.1 [1.3-3.4]). Excess risk of IP in decedents was 2.6 (95% CI, 1.3-4.9; P = 0.004). CONCLUSION: Iatrogenic pneumothorax is a life-threatening complication seen in 3% of ICU patients. Incorporating risk factors for IP into preventive strategies should reduce the occurrence of IP.

Aged↗

Detrimental role of delayed antibiotic administration and penicillin-nonsusceptible strains in adult intensive care unit patients with pneumococcal meningitis: the PNEUMOREA prospective multicenter study.

OBJECTIVE: To identify factors associated with mortality and morbidity among adults admitted to intensive care units (ICUs) for pneumococcal meningitis, particularly the impact of delayed antibiotic administration. DESIGN: We conducted a prospective, multicenter, observational study of 156 consecutive adults hospitalized for pneumococcal meningitis. We analyzed parameters associated with 3-month survival. SETTING: Fifty-six medical and medical-surgical ICUs in France. INTERVENTION: None. RESULTS: Of the 148 strains isolated, 56 (38%) were nonsusceptible to penicillin G. At 3 months after ICU admission, the mortality rate was 33% (51/156), and 34% of survivors (36/105) had neurologic sequelae. Multivariate analysis identified three variables as independently associated with 3-month mortality: Simplified Acute Physiology Score II (odds ration [OR], 1.12; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.072-1.153; p = .002); isolation of a nonsusceptible strain (OR, 6.83; 95% CI, 2.94-20.8; p < 10(-4)), and an interval of >3 hrs between hospital admission and administration of antibiotics (OR, 14.12; 95% CI, 3.93-50.9; p < 10(-4)). In contrast, a cerebrospinal fluid leukocyte count >10(3) cells/microL had a protective effect (OR, 0.30; 95% CI, 0.10-0.944; p = 0.04). CONCLUSIONS: Independent of severity at the time of ICU admission, isolation of penicillin-nonsusceptible strains and a delay in antibiotic treatment following admission were predictors of mortality among patients with pneumococcal meningitis.

Adult↗

Attributable cost of methicillin resistance: an issue that is difficult to evaluate.

Estimating the consequences and the cost of methicillin resistance is a difficult challenge. Patients who develop methicillin-resistant ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) are very different from those who develop methicillin-sensitive VAP, and biased estimates are frequent. We reviewed some important confounding factors of which the reader should be aware.

Costs and Cost Analysis↗

Candida colonization of the respiratory tract and subsequent pseudomonas ventilator-associated pneumonia.

BACKGROUND: Recovery of Candida from the respiratory tract of a critically ill patient receiving mechanical ventilation (MV) usually indicates colonization rather than infection of the respiratory tract. However, interactions between Candida and bacteria, particularly Pseudomonas, have been reported. Thus, Candida colonization of the respiratory tract may predispose to bacterial ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP). METHODS: In a multicenter study of immunocompetent critically ill patients receiving MV for > 2 days, we compared the incidence of pneumonia in patients with and without (exposed/unexposed) respiratory-tract Candida colonization, matched on study center, admission year, and MV duration. RESULTS: Over the 4-year study period, of the 803 patients meeting study inclusion criteria in the six study centers, 214 patients (26.6%) had respiratory tract Candida colonization. Candida albicans was the most common species (68.7%), followed by Candida glabrata (20.1%) and Candida tropicalis (13.1%). Extrapulmonary Candida colonization was more common in exposed patients (39.7% vs 8.3%, p = 0.01). Exposed patients had longer ICU and hospital stays but similar mortality to unexposed patients. The matched exposed/unexposed nested cohort study identified bronchial Candida colonization as an independent risk factor for pneumonia (24.1% vs 17.6%; adjusted odds ratio [OR], 1.58; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.94 to 2.68; p = 0.0860); the risk increase was greatest for Pseudomonas pneumonia (9% vs 4.8%; adjusted OR, 2.22; 95% CI, 1.00 to 4.92; p = 0.049). CONCLUSIONS: Candida colonization of the respiratory tract is common in patients receiving MV for > 2 days and is associated with prolonged ICU and hospital stays, and with an increased risk of Pseudomonas VAP.

Aged↗

Control and outcome of a large outbreak of colonization and infection with glycopeptide-intermediate Staphylococcus aureus in an intensive care unit.

BACKGROUND: Glycopeptide-intermediate Staphylococcus aureus (GISA) is emerging as a cause of nosocomial infection and outbreaks of infection and colonization in intensive care units (ICUs). We describe an outbreak of GISA colonization/infection and the ensuing control measures in an ICU and investigate outcomes of the affected patients. METHODS: We describe an outbreak of GISA colonization and infection that affected 21 patients in a medical ICU at a tertiary care teaching hospital, as well as the measures taken to eradicate the GISA strain. RESULT: Recognition of the outbreak was difficult. Infections, all of which were severe, were diagnosed in 11 of 21 patients. Patient isolation and barrier precautions failed when used alone. Addition of a stringent policy of restricted admissions, twice daily environmental cleaning, and implementation of hand decontamination with a hydroalcoholic solution led to outbreak termination. This was associated with increases in workload, despite a marked decrease in the number of admissions. CONCLUSION: This first description of a large outbreak of GISA colonization and infection underlines the importance of routine GISA-strain detection when methicillin-resistant S. aureus is isolated. Outbreak control may be difficult to achieve.

Anti-Bacterial Agents↗

Open the intensive care unit doors to HIV-infected patients with sepsis.

Severe sepsis is more and more frequent, especially because of an increased rate of immunocompromised patients. Despite the improvement in the overall prognosis of HIV/AIDS patients and the improvement of global ICU care, the prognosis of HIV/ADS patients hospitalized in ICU with severe sepsis remained poor. This situation is partly due to the increased proportion of HIV/AIDS patients with limited access to health care and to a reluctance of ICU physicians in admitting HIV infected patients. However, medical literature suggests that ICU prognosis of immunocompromised (especially cancer) patients should be largely improved by early ICU admission and by an early institution of supportive techniques. This strategy should be used in HIV/AIDS patients with severe sepsis.

Comorbidity↗

Successful long-term program for controlling methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus in intensive care units.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effectiveness of screening strategy and contact precautions for patients with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). DESIGN AND SETTING: Prospective observational cohort from 1 February 1995 to 31 December 2001 in three intensive care units (45 beds) in a French teaching hospital. PATIENTS: 8,548 patients admitted to the three ICUs had nasal screening on ICU admission and weekly thereafter. Contact precautions were used in MRSA-positive patients. The following variables were collected: age, gender, severity score, length of stay, workload, and colonization pressure (percentage of patient-days with an MRSA to the number of patient-days in the unit). Alcohol-based handrub solution was introduced in July 2000. We compared the period before this (P1) with that thereafter (P2). RESULTS: Of the 8,548 admitted patients 554 (6.5%) had MRSA at ICU admission, and 456 of the 7,515 (6.1%) exposed patients acquired MRSA. Acquisition incidence decreased from 7.0% in P1 to 2.8% in P2. Independent variables associated with MRSA acquisition were: age (adjusted odds ratio 1.013), severity score (1.047), length of ICU stay (1.015), colonization pressure (1.019), medical ICU (1.58), and P2 (0.49). CONCLUSIONS: MRSA control in these ICUs characterized by a high prevalence of MRSA at admission was achieved via multiple factors, including screening, contact precautions, and use of alcoholic handrub solution. Our results after adjustment of risk factors for MRSA acquisition and the steady improvement in MRSA over several years strengthen these findings. MRSA spreading can be successfully controlled in ICUs with high colonization pressure.

Adult↗

Epidemiology and economic evaluation of severe sepsis in France: age, severity, infection site, and place of acquisition (community, hospital, or intensive care unit) as determinants of workload and cost.

PURPOSE: Severe sepsis is a leading cause of death in critically ill patients. We evaluated cost and workload according to infection site, place and time of acquisition, and severity. MATERIAL AND METHOD: We used a prospective 3-year database from 6 intensive care units (ICUs) including 1698 patients. RESULTS: Of the 1698 patients, 713 (42%) had severe sepsis at admission and 339 during the ICU stay (211 had both). Mortality was twice as high in patients with than those without ICU-acquired infection, independent of the presence of severe sepsis at admission. The mean (SD; median) cost of severe sepsis was 22 800 (21 400 ; 15 800 ). Among patients with severe sepsis at admission, workload and cost were higher for pneumonia, peritonitis, and multiple-site infections and for hospital-acquired (17,400 [14,700; 17,400]) vs community-acquired infection (12,600 [12,100 ; 8900 ]). Intensive care unit-acquired severe sepsis was associated with greater than 3-fold increases in workload and costs. By multiple linear regression, older age, emergency surgery, septic shock, Acute Physiological and Chronic Health Evaluation II score, and hospital or ICU-acquired severe sepsis were independently associated with higher costs. CONCLUSIONS: The wide variations in cost and workload invite efforts to identify patient subgroups most likely to benefit from high-cost treatments and from prevention, particularly targeting severe nosocomial infections.

APACHE↗

Nosocomial infection and multidrug-resistant bacteria surveillance in intensive care units: a survey in France.

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate nosocomial infection (NI) surveillance strategies in French ICUs and to identify similar patterns defining subsets within which comparisons can be made. DESIGN: A questionnaire was sent to all French ICUs, and a random sample of nonresponders was interviewed. PARTICIPANTS: Three hundred ninety-five responder ICUs (69%) in France. RESULTS: In 282 ICUs (71%), a dedicated ICU staff member was responsible for infection control activities. The microbiology laboratory was usually in the hospital (90%) and computerized (94%) but issued regular hospital microbiology records in only 48% of cases. Patients receiving mechanical ventilation, central venous catheterization, and urinary catheterization were 90%, 79%, and 60%, respectively. Patients were screened for carriage of multidrug-resistant bacteria on admission and during the stay in 70% and 60% of ICUs, respectively, most often targeting MRSA. Quantitative cultures were used to diagnose ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) in 90% of ICUs, including distal specimens in 80% and bronchoscopy specimens in 60%. Quantitative central venous catheter (CVC)-segment cultures were used in 70% of ICUs. All CVCs were cultured routinely in 53% of the ICUs. Despite wide variations in infection control and surveillance strategies, multiple correspondence analysis identified 13 key points (4 structural variables and 9 variables concerning the diagnosis of VAP, the surveillance and diagnosis of catheter-related and urinary tract infections, and the mode of screening of MRSA carriers) that categorize the variability of French ICUs' approaches to NIs. CONCLUSION: This study revealed profound differences in NI surveillance strategies across ICUs, indicating a need for caution when using NI surveillance data for comparisons and benchmarking.

Carrier State↗

Predictors of intensive care unit refusal in French intensive care units: a multiple-center study.

OBJECTIVE: To identify factors associated with granting or refusing intensive care unit (ICU) admission, to analyze ICU characteristics and triage decisions, and to describe mortality in admitted and refused patients. DESIGN: Observational, prospective, multiple-center study. SETTING: Four university hospitals and seven primary-care hospitals in France. INTERVENTIONS: None. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Age, underlying diseases (McCabe score and Knaus class), dependency, hospital mortality, and ICU characteristics were recorded. The crude ICU refusal rate was 23.8% (137/574), with variations from 7.1% to 63.1%. The reasons for refusal were too well to benefit (76/137, 55.4%), too sick to benefit (51/137, 37.2%), unit too busy (9/137, 6.5%), and refusal by the family (1/137). In logistic regression analyses, two patient-related factors were associated with ICU refusal: dependency (odds ratio [OR], 14.20; 95% confidence interval [CI], 5.27-38.25; p < .0001) and metastatic cancer (OR, 5.82; 95% CI, 2.22-15.28). Other risk factors were organizational, namely, full unit (OR, 3.16; 95% CI, 1.88-5.31), center (OR, 3.81; 95% CI, 2.27-6.39), phone admission (OR, 0.23; 95% CI, 0.14-0.40), and daytime admission (OR, 0.52; 95% CI, 0.32-0.84). The Standardized Mortality Ratio was 1.41 (95% CI, 1.19-1.69) for immediately admitted patients, 1.75 (95% CI, 1.60-1.84) for refused patients, and 1.03 (95% CI, 0.28-1.75) for later-admitted patients. CONCLUSIONS: ICU refusal rates varied greatly across ICUs and were dependent on both patient and organizational factors. Efforts to define ethically optimal ICU admission policies might lead to greater homogeneity in refusal rates, although case-mix variations would be expected to leave an irreducible amount of variation across ICUs.

Female↗

Case report: greater meningeal inflammation in lumbar than in ventricular region in human bacterial meningitis.

Differences in the composition of ventricular and lumbar cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) based on single pairs of samples have previously been described. We describe a patient that developed post-surgical recurrent meningitis monitored by daily biochemical and bacteriological CSF analysis, simultaneously withdrawn from lumbar space and ventricles. A 20-year-old Caucasian man was admitted to the ICU after a resection of a chordoma that extended from the sphenoidal sinus to the anterior face of C2. CSF was continuously leaking into the pharyngeal cavity after surgery, and three episodes of recurrent meningitis, all due to Pseudomonas aeruginosa O12, occurred. Our case showed permanent ventricular-to-lumbar CSF gradients of leukocytes, protein and glucose that were increased during the acute phase of meningitis, with the greatest amplitude being observed when bacteria were present in both ventricular and lumbar CSF. This might suggest a greater extent of meningeal inflammation in the lumbar than in the ventricular region. Our case also showed that the increase in intravenous antibiotics (cefepim from 8 to 12 g/day and ciprofloxacine from 1.2 to 2.4 g/day) led to an increase in concentration in plasma but not in CSF.

Adult↗

Infective endocarditis in the intensive care unit: clinical spectrum and prognostic factors in 228 consecutive patients.

OBJECTIVE: To identify factors associated with in-hospital outcome of adult patients admitted to the ICU with infective endocarditis (IE). DESIGN AND SETTING: Retrospective study performed in the two medical ICUs of a teaching hospital. PATIENTS AND PARTICIPANTS: The charts of all 228 consecutive patients aged 18 years or older admitted with infective IE between January 1993 and December 2000 were reviewed. All patients satisfied the modified Duke's criteria for definite IE. MEASUREMENTS AND RESULTS: There were 146 episodes of native valve endocarditis and 82 of prosthetic valve endocarditis. Staphylococcus aureus was the predominant causative micro-organism. Most complications occurred early during the course of IE. One-half of the patients underwent cardiac surgery during the same hospitalization and had a better outcome than nonoperated patients. The overall in-hospital mortality rate was 45% (102/228). Multivariate analysis revealed the following clinical factors in patients with native valve IE as independently associated with outcome: septic shock (odds ratio 4.81), cerebral emboli (3.00), immunocompromised state (2.88), and cardiac surgery (0.475); in patients with prosthetic valve IE the factors were: septic shock (4.07), neurological complications (3.1), and immunocompromised state (3.46). CONCLUSIONS: IE still carries high morbidity and mortality rates for the subset of patients requiring ICU admission. Most complications occur early making the decision process for optimal medical and surgical management more difficult. Surgical treatment appears to improve in-hospital outcome.

Cardiac Surgical Procedures↗

Efficacy of adequate early antibiotic therapy in ventilator-associated pneumonia: influence of disease severity.

OBJECTIVE: To test the hypothesis that the outcome of patients with ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) depends on both their baseline severity at VAP onset and the adequacy of empirical antibiotic therapy. DESIGN AND SETTING: Prospective clinical study in six intensive care units in Paris, France. PATIENTS: One hundred and forty-two patients with VAP after >/= 48 h of mechanical ventilation. MEASUREMENTS AND RESULTS: Patients were compared according to whether adequate antibiotics were started when VAP was first suspected (D0). At day 0, the rate of adequate antibiotic therapy was 44.4% and rose to 92% at day 2. Outcomes were recorded at the ICU and hospital discharge. Overall, no significant mortality difference was found with and without adequate early antibiotics. When patients were also classified based on the initial Logistic Organ Dysfunction score (LOD), mortality was significantly higher with inadequate early antibiotic therapy in the groups with LOD </= 4 (ICU mortality: 37% vs 7%, P=0.006; hospital mortality: 44% vs 15%, P=0.01). A multivariate logistic regression confirmed that inadequate antibiotic therapy increased mortality in patients with LOD </= 4 after adjustment on other prognostic factors. CONCLUSIONS: Inadequate empirical treatment seemed to be associated with a poor prognosis only in patients with LOD </= 4. These results need to be confirmed by further studies before any reappraisal of current guidelines for empirical antibiotic therapy of VAP can be envisaged.

Aged↗

Practices in non-neutropenic ICU patients with Candida-positive airway specimens.

OBJECTIVE: To examine practices of French intensivists regarding the management of mechanically ventilated patients with Candida-positive airway specimens but no major risk factors for immunodepression. Design : Closed-item questionnaire with a clinical vignette. SETTING: 564 French intensive care units (ICUs). PARTICIPANTS: 198 intensivists who have a special interest in infectious diseases and who answered the questionnaire (response rate, 35.1%). INTERVENTION: None. MEASUREMENTS AND RESULTS: The respondents recommended bronchoalveolar lavage (62.6% of respondents), protected distal sampling and protected specimen brush (59.1%), transbronchial biopsy (38.9%), and tracheal aspiration (12.1%) for the diagnosis of candidal pneumonia. A positive airway specimen was felt by most respondents (83.3%) to indicate colonisation; 66.7% of respondents recommended tests for systemic candidiasis in this situation, and 56.5% serial sampling to compute the colonisation index. Azole derivatives were the preferred antifungal medications. The clinical vignette described a patient with chronic obstructive lung disease who required mechanical ventilation for an acute exacerbation and who had a tracheal aspirate positive for Candida. Responses varied widely, with 37.8% of respondents diagnosing clinically insignificant colonisation but 24.2% recommending antifungal treatment and 61.6% serial testing to assess the Candida colonisation index. Intensivists with greater experience with severely immunocompromised patients were more aggressive in their diagnostic management. CONCLUSIONS: Wide variations occur among practices of French intensivists regarding Candida-positive airway specimens in patients without major risk factors for immunodepression. Additional studies are needed to improve our understanding of the links between Candida colonisation and infection and to determine the indications for pre-emptive antifungal treatment in non-neutropenic critically ill patients.

Antifungal Agents↗

Acquisition of multidrug-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa in patients in intensive care units: role of antibiotics with antipseudomonal activity.

A matched case-control study was performed to identify risk factors for acquiring multidrug-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa (MDRPA) in intensive care unit (ICU) patients during a 2-year period. MDRPA was defined as P. aeruginosa with combined decreased susceptibility to piperacillin, ceftazidime, imipenem, and ciprofloxacin. Thirty-seven patients who were colonized or infected with MDRPA were identified, 34 of whom were matched with 34 control patients who had cultures that showed no growth of P. aeruginosa. Matching criteria were severity of illness and length of ICU stay, with each control patient staying in the ICU for at least as long as the time period between the corresponding case patient's admission to the ICU and the acquisition of MDRPA. Baseline demographic and clinical characteristics and the use of invasive procedures were similar for case patients and control patients. Multivariate analysis identified duration of ciprofloxacin treatment as an independent risk factor for MDRPA acquisition, whereas the duration of treatment with imipenem was of borderline significance. These data support a major role for the use of antibiotics with high antipseudomonal activity, particularly ciprofloxacin, in the emergence of MDRPA.

Aged↗