-
Frontiers in Network Physiology 2024Algorithms for the detection of COVID-19 illness from wearable sensor devices tend to implicitly treat the disease as causing a stereotyped (and therefore recognizable)...
Algorithms for the detection of COVID-19 illness from wearable sensor devices tend to implicitly treat the disease as causing a stereotyped (and therefore recognizable) deviation from healthy physiology. In contrast, a substantial diversity of bodily responses to SARS-CoV-2 infection have been reported in the clinical milieu. This raises the question of how to characterize the diversity of illness manifestations, and whether such characterization could reveal meaningful relationships across different illness manifestations. Here, we present a framework motivated by information theory to generate quantified maps of illness presentation, which we term "manifestations," as resolved by continuous physiological data from a wearable device (Oura Ring). We test this framework on five physiological data streams (heart rate, heart rate variability, respiratory rate, metabolic activity, and sleep temperature) assessed at the time of reported illness onset in a previously reported COVID-19-positive cohort (N = 73). We find that the number of distinct manifestations are few in this cohort, compared to the space of all possible manifestations. In addition, manifestation frequency correlates with the rough number of symptoms reported by a given individual, over a several-day period prior to their imputed onset of illness. These findings suggest that information-theoretic approaches can be used to sort COVID-19 illness manifestations into types with real-world value. This proof of concept supports the use of information-theoretic approaches to map illness manifestations from continuous physiological data. Such approaches could likely inform algorithm design and real-time treatment decisions if developed on large, diverse samples.
PubMed: 38948084
DOI: 10.3389/fnetp.2024.1211413 -
Journal of Asthma and Allergy 2024To investigate the patterns of allergens in allergic conjunctivitis (AC) and the association with allergic comorbidity.
PURPOSE
To investigate the patterns of allergens in allergic conjunctivitis (AC) and the association with allergic comorbidity.
METHODS
This retrospective cross-sectional study enrolled 2972 children with AC. Clinical data, including sex, age, allergic comorbidities (allergic asthma, allergic rhinitis, and atopic dermatitis), and serum allergen-specific immunoglobulin E (sIgE), were collected from the electronic medical record (EMR). The categorical variables were compared with the chi-square test. The characteristics of allergens in children of different ages and comorbidities were analyzed by trend chi-square. The sensitivity level of HDM associated with AC and comorbidities was assessed by odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals of logistic regression analysis.
RESULTS
A total of 2972 children (2015 boys and 957 girls) with AC were included in the study. The mean age was 3.78 (0.5~12) years. The most common allergen was house dust mite(HDM) (43.41%). With age, the positive rate for inhaled allergens gradually increased, and the positive rate for ingested allergens decreased. With the number of comorbidities increasing, the positive rates of sensitization were 38.33%, 74.51%, 80.72%, and 89.05%, and the incidence of polysensitization was 44.66%, 56.48%, 59.54%, and 74.59%, respectively. With the increase of HDM-sIgE level, the number of comorbidities and the risk increased gradually.
CONCLUSION
HDM is the most common allergen in AC children of different ages. High levels of HDM-sIgE may be a predictor for allergic comorbidities. Children with polysensitization and high levels of HDM sIgE will be an important target population for future intervention in other allergy-related disease prevention.
PubMed: 38947955
DOI: 10.2147/JAA.S467671 -
Endoscopic Ultrasound 2024Endobronchial ultrasound (EBUS) imaging is a valuable tool for predicting lymph node (LN) metastasis in lung cancer patients. This study aimed to develop a risk-scoring...
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES
Endobronchial ultrasound (EBUS) imaging is a valuable tool for predicting lymph node (LN) metastasis in lung cancer patients. This study aimed to develop a risk-scoring model based on EBUS multimodal imaging (grayscale, Doppler mode, elastography) to predict LN metastasis in lung cancer patients.
PATIENTS AND METHODS
This retrospective study analyzed 350 metastatic LNs in 314 patients with lung cancer and 124 reactive LNs in 96 patients with nonspecific inflammation. The sonographic findings were compared with the final pathology results and clinical follow-up. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed to evaluate the independent risk factors of metastatic LNs. According to the coefficients of corresponding indicators in logistic regression analysis, a risk-scoring model was established. Receiver operating characteristic curve was applied to evaluate the predictive capability of model.
RESULTS
Multivariate analysis showed that short axis >10 mm, distinct margin, absence of central hilar structure, presence of necrosis, nonhilar vascularity, and elastography score 4 to 5 were independent predictors of metastatic LNs. Both short axis and margin were scored 1 point, and the rest of independent predictors were scored 2 points. The combination of 3 EBUS modes had the highest area under the receiver operating characteristic and accuracy of 0.884 (95% confidence interval, 0.846-0.922) and 87.55%, respectively. The risk stratification was as follows: 0 to 2 points, malignancy rate of 11.11%, low suspicion; 3 to 10 points, malignancy rate of 86.77%, high suspicion.
CONCLUSIONS
The risk-scoring model based on EBUS multimodal imaging can effectively evaluate metastatic LNs in lung cancer patients to support clinical decision making.
PubMed: 38947743
DOI: 10.1097/eus.0000000000000051 -
Cureus May 2024With COVID-19 becoming a common disease, primary care facilities such as clinics are required to efficiently triage patients at high risk of severe illness within the...
BACKGROUND
With COVID-19 becoming a common disease, primary care facilities such as clinics are required to efficiently triage patients at high risk of severe illness within the constraints of limited medical resources. However, existing COVID-19 severity risk scores require detailed medical history assessments, such as evaluating the severity of pneumonia via chest CT and accounting for past and comorbid conditions. Therefore, they may not be suitable for practical use in clinical settings with limited medical resources, including personnel and equipment.
PURPOSE
The goal is to identify key variables that predict the need for oxygen therapy in COVID-19 patients and develop a simplified clinical risk score based solely on vital signs to predict oxygen requirements.
PATIENTS AND METHODS
A retrospective observational study of 584 outpatients with COVID-19 confirmed by polymerase chain reaction test visited Sasebo Chuo Hospital between April 28, 2022, and August 18, 2022. Analyses were conducted after adjustment for background factors of age and sex with propensity score matching. We used the Fisher test for nominal variables and the Kruskal-Wallis test for continuous variables.
RESULTS
After adjusting for age and sex, several factors significantly correlated with the need for oxygen within seven days including body temperature (p < 0.001), respiratory rate (p = 0.007), SpO (p < 0.001), and the detection of pneumonia on CT scans (p = 0.032). The area under the receiver-operating characteristic curve for the risk score based on these vital signs and CT was 0.947 (95% confidence interval: 0.911-0.982). The risk score based solely on vital signs was 0.937 (0.900-0.974), demonstrating the ability to predict oxygen administration with no significant differences.
CONCLUSIONS
Body temperature, advanced age, increased respiratory rate, decreased SpO, and the presence of pneumonia on CT scans were significant predictors of oxygen need within seven days among the study participants. The risk score, based solely on vital signs, effectively and simply assesses the likelihood of requiring oxygen therapy within seven days with high accuracy. The risk score, which utilizes only age and vital signs and does not require a detailed patient history or CT scans, could streamline hospital referral processes for admissions.
PubMed: 38947613
DOI: 10.7759/cureus.61270 -
Heliyon Jun 2024This work aimed to investigate the adoption value of blood lactic acid (BLA) combined with the National Early Warning Score (NEWS) in the early screening of sepsis...
This work aimed to investigate the adoption value of blood lactic acid (BLA) combined with the National Early Warning Score (NEWS) in the early screening of sepsis patients and assessing their severity. The data and materials utilized in this work were obtained from the electronic medical record system of 537 anonymized sepsis patients who received emergency rescue in the emergency rescue area of Liuzhou People's Hospital, Guangxi, from July 1, 2020, to December 26, 2020. Based on the 28-day outcomes of sepsis patients, the medical records were rolled into Group S (407 survival cases) and Group D (130 dead cases). Basic information such as the mode of hospital admission, initial management, use of emergency ventilator within 24 h of admission, NEWS score, arterial oxygen pressure/alveolar oxygen pressure ratio (PaO/PAO), alveolar-arterial oxygen difference (A-aDO), serum creatinine (SCr), blood urea nitrogen (BUN), oxygenation index (OI), Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS), D-dimer, use of vasoactive drugs within 24 h of admission, C-reactive protein (CRP), procalcitonin (PCT), interleukin-6 (IL-6), N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP), quick Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (qSOFA) score, SOFA score, BLA level, NEWS with lactate (NEWS-L) score, SOFA score including lactate level (SOFA-L) score, Intensive Care Unit (ICU) length of stay, total hospital stay, ICU stay/total hospital stay, and septic shock condition were compared between groups. Logistic regression analysis was performed to assess the impact of various predictive factors on prognosis and to plot the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. The results suggested marked differences between Group S and Group D in terms of mean age ( = -5.620; OR = -9.96, 95 % CI: -13.44∼-6.47; < 0.001). Group S showed drastic differences in terms of mode of hospital admission (χ = 9.618, < 0.01), method of initial management (χ = 51.766, < 0.001), use of emergency ventilator within 24 h of admission (χ = 98.564, < 0.001), incidence of septic shock (χ = 77.545, < 0.001), use of vasoactive drugs within 24 h of admission (χ = 102.453, < 0.001), heart rate ( = -4.063, < 0.001), respiratory rate ( = -4.758, < 0.001), oxygenation status (χ = 20.547, < 0.001), NEWS score ( = -6.120, < 0.001), PaO/PAO ratio ( = 2.625, < 0.01), A-aDO value ( = -3.581, < 0.001), OI value ( = -3.106, < 0.01), PLT value ( = -2.305, < 0.05), SCr value ( = -3.510, < 0.001), BUN value ( = -3.170, < 0.01), D-dimer ( = -4.621, < 0.001), CRP level ( = -4.057, < 0.001), PCT value ( = -2.783, < 0.01), IL-6 level ( = -2.904, < 0.001), length of hospital stay ( = -4.138, < 0.001), total hospital stay ( = -8.488, < 0.001), CCU/total hospital stay ( = -9.118, < 0.001), NEWS score ( = -6.120, < 0.001), SOFA score ( = -6.961, < 0.001), SOFA-L score ( = -4.609, < 0.001), NEWS-L score ( = -5.845, < 0.001), BLA level ( = -6.557, < 0.001), and GCS score ( = 6.909, < 0.001) when compared to Group D. The use of ventilators, septic shock, PCT, NEWS score, GCS score, SOFA score, SOFA-L score, NEWS-L score, and BLA level were identified as independent risk factors for predicting the prognosis of sepsis patients ( < 0.001). The areas under ROC curve (AUC) of blood lactic acid, PCT, NEWS, NEWS-L, GCS, SOFA, and SOFA-L were 0.695, 0.665, 0.692, 0.698, 0.477, 0.700, and 0.653, respectively. These findings indicate that the combination of BLA with NEWS (NEWS-L) score and SOFA score has certain advantages in assessing the prognosis of sepsis.
PubMed: 38947447
DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e31907 -
Health Care Science Jun 2024Silent hypoxemia is when patients do not experience breathing difficulty in the presence of alarmingly low O saturation. It could cause rapid deterioration and higher...
Evaluation of the predictors and frequency of silent hypoxemia in COVID-19 patients and the gap between pulse oximeter and arterial blood gas levels: A cross-sectional study.
BACKGROUND
Silent hypoxemia is when patients do not experience breathing difficulty in the presence of alarmingly low O saturation. It could cause rapid deterioration and higher mortality rates among patients, so prompt detection and identifying predictive factors could result in significantly better outcomes. This study aims to document the evidence of silent hypoxemia in patients with COVID-19 and its clinical features.
METHODS
A total of 78 hospitalized, nonintubated patients with confirmed COVID-19 infection were included in this study. Their O saturation was measured with a pulse oximeter (PO), and arterial blood gas (ABG) was taken. Demographic and clinical features were recorded. The Borg scale was used to evaluate dyspnea status, and patients with a score of less than two accompanied by O saturation of less than 94% were labeled as silent hypoxic. Univariate analysis was utilized to evaluate the correlation between variables and their odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI).
RESULTS
Silent hypoxemia was observed in 20 (25.6%) of the participants. The average difference between the PO and ABG methods was 4.36 ± 3.43. Based on regression analysis, dyspnea and respiratory rate demonstrated a statistically significant correlation with the O saturation difference between PO and ABG (OR: 2.05; = 0.026; 95% CI: 0.248-3.847 and OR: 0.144; = 0.048, 95% CI: 0.001-0.286). Furthermore, the Borg scale (OR: 0.29; = 0.009; 95% CI: 0.116-0.740) had a significant reverse correlation with silent hypoxia.
CONCLUSIONS
Silent hypoxemia can be a possible complication that affects some COVID-19 patients. Further care should be bestowed upon the younger population and those with underlying neurological or mental illnesses. Furthermore, the respiratory rate, pulse oximeter, and arterial blood gas O levels should be considered alongside each other.
PubMed: 38947362
DOI: 10.1002/hcs2.98 -
American Journal of Critical Care : An... Jul 2024Continuous electrocardiographic (ECG) monitoring was first introduced into hospitals in the 1960s, initially into critical care, as bedside monitors, and eventually into...
Continuous electrocardiographic (ECG) monitoring was first introduced into hospitals in the 1960s, initially into critical care, as bedside monitors, and eventually into step-down units with telemetry capabilities. Although the initial use was rather simplistic (ie, heart rate and rhythm assessment), the capabilities of these devices and associated physiologic (vital sign) monitors have expanded considerably. Current bedside monitors now include sophisticated ECG software designed to identify myocardial ischemia (ie, ST-segment monitoring), QT-interval prolongation, and a myriad of other cardiac arrhythmia types. Physiologic monitoring has had similar advances from noninvasive assessment of core vital signs (blood pressure, respiratory rate, oxygen saturation) to invasive monitoring including arterial blood pressure, temperature, central venous pressure, intracranial pressure, carbon dioxide, and many others. The benefit of these monitoring devices is that continuous and real-time information is displayed and can be configured to alarm to alert nurses to a change in a patient's condition. I think it is fair to say that critical and high-acuity care nurses see these devices as having a positive impact in patient care. However, this enthusiasm has been somewhat dampened in the past decade by research highlighting the shortcomings and unanticipated consequences of these devices, namely alarm and alert fatigue. In this article, which is associated with the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses' Distinguished Research Lecture, I describe my 36-year journey from a clinical nurse to nurse scientist and the trajectory of my program of research focused primarily on ECG and physiologic monitoring. Specifically, I discuss the good, the not so good, and the untapped potential of these monitoring systems in clinical care. I also describe my experiences with community-based research in patients with acute coronary syndrome and/or heart failure.
Topics: Humans; Electrocardiography; Monitoring, Physiologic
PubMed: 38945816
DOI: 10.4037/ajcc2024781 -
The Journal of Pediatrics Jun 2024To investigate the extent of extra-skeletal manifestations along with inpatient outcomes and complications associated with osteogenesis imperfecta (OI).
National Trends in Inpatient Hospital Outcomes of Children with Osteogenesis Imperfecta and the Importance of Extra-skeletal Manifestations: A Kids' Inpatient Database Study.
OBJECTIVE
To investigate the extent of extra-skeletal manifestations along with inpatient outcomes and complications associated with osteogenesis imperfecta (OI).
STUDY DESIGN
This cross-sectional study utilized the Kids' Inpatient Database (KID) as part of the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP) to investigate inpatient hospital outcomes and management in patients with OI from 1997 through 2016. Data regarding hospital characteristics, cost of treatment, inpatient outcomes, and procedures were collected and analyzed.
RESULTS
There were 7,291 admissions that listed OI as a diagnosis in the KID database from 1997 through 2016. Unexpectedly, over one third of all admissions in these children with OI presented with an extra-skeletal manifestation. The rate of major complications was 3.85%. The rate of minor complications was 19.4%, most commonly respiratory problems. Mortality rate was 18.2 % in the neonatal period and 1.0% in all other admissions. Total charges of hospital stay increased over the years.
CONCLUSION
We identified a striking prevalence of extra-skeletal manifestations in OI along with inpatient outcomes and complications associated with OI, of which respiratory complications were predominant. We observed a significant financial burden for patients with OI and identified additional risks for financial crisis, in addition to disparities in care identified among socioeconomic groups. These data contribute to a more holistic understanding of OI from diagnosis to management.
PubMed: 38945443
DOI: 10.1016/j.jpeds.2024.114174 -
Contemporary Clinical Trials Jun 2024Awake prone positioning is studied extensively during Covid-19 pandemic, but there is very limited evidence on its utility in acute hypoxic respiratory failure caused by...
BACKGROUND
Awake prone positioning is studied extensively during Covid-19 pandemic, but there is very limited evidence on its utility in acute hypoxic respiratory failure caused by bacterial infections or other causes. The aim of our research is to evaluate the impact of awake prone positioning on outcomes in non-intubated adult patients with acute non-Covid19 hypoxemic respiratory failure.
METHODS
This is a multi-center randomized controlled trial (RCT) with a parallel-group design and a 1:1 allocation ratio. Adult patients, admitted to ICU and diagnosed with hypoxemic respiratory failure will be randomly allocated into intervention (awake prone position (APP)) or control group. Our hypothesis is that addition of awake prone positioning to standard oxygen, high flow oxygen therapy and non-invasive ventilation may reduce the need for mechanical ventilation in adult patients diagnosed with acute hypoxemic respiratory failure. Primary outcome is rate of endotracheal intubation; secondary outcomes include intensive care and hospital mortality, duration of mechanical ventilation, length of intensive care and hospital stay and health related quality of life post hospital discharge. Primary and secondary outcomes will be assessed at hospital discharge, 30, 90 days and 1 year following randomisation.
CONCLUSION
The Hyper-AP study will assess the superiority of awake prone positioning versus standard treatment in spontaneously breathing ICU patients diagnosed with hypoxaemic respiratory failure.
PubMed: 38945293
DOI: 10.1016/j.cct.2024.107614 -
Toxicon : Official Journal of the... Jun 2024Morocco is one of the main countries affected in North African with the scorpion envenomations. Faced with the threat, significant morbidity and a major risk of death...
Morocco is one of the main countries affected in North African with the scorpion envenomations. Faced with the threat, significant morbidity and a major risk of death especially in children, a detailed identification of scorpionic profile of stings remains important for health authorities at national or even regional level. The current study aims to establish the epidemiological, clinical, biological and evolutionary data of the scorpionism by analyzing 383 cases of scorpion stings in children from three age groups (< 1 year, 1-5 years and > 5 years), admitted at the Regional Hospital Hassan II-Agadir in the Souss Massa region during the period of 9 years and 10 months from January 2013 to October 2022. Our results showed that patients under 1 year of age presented the most severe cases and had the highest mortality rate. However, the clinical signs and symptoms observed illustrated severe damages to vital systems, particularly the cardiovascular, neurological and pulmonary systems, although the signs associated with the latter were present only in cases admitted in grades 2 and 3 for the three age categories studied. Fluctuations in vital constants (temperature and peripheral oxygen saturation, blood pressure, heart rate and respiratory rate), biochemical parameters (ASAT, ALAT, urea and blood creatine, as well as blood sugar) and CBC results revealed major functional disturbances in vital organs, especially in envenomated cases admitted in grade 3. A positive correlation was mentioned between the state of evolution and the various epidemiological parameters, digestive symptoms, as well as signs and symptoms linked to hemodynamic state, general and neurological state. The main interest is to illustrate the seriousness of scorpion envenomations, especially in the high-risk population, for whom an improved therapeutic approach in health centers will undoubtedly be reinforced, and the admission of immunotherapy, as a fundamental part of the treatment, remains important.
PubMed: 38945218
DOI: 10.1016/j.toxicon.2024.107832