Safety incidents in airway and mechanical ventilation in Spanish ICUs: The IVeMVA study

Patient safety in the intensive care department

Patient safety is a priority for all healthcare systems. Despite this, too many patients still suffer harm as a consequence of healthcare. Furthermore, it has a significant impact on family members, professionals and healthcare institutions, resulting in considerable economic costs. The critically ill patient is particularly vulnerable to adverse events. Numerous safe practices have been implemented, acknowledging the influence of human factors on safety and the significance of the well-being of professionals, as well as the impact of critical episodes at hospital discharge on patients and their families. Training and engagement of professionals, patients and families are of paramount importance. Recently, artificial intelligence has demonstrated its ability to enhance clinical safety. This update on "Patient Safety" reviews all these aspects related to one of the most pivotal dimensions of healthcare quality.

Clinical practices related to liberation from mechanical ventilation in Latin American pediatric intensive care units: survey of the Sociedad Latino-Americana de Cuidados Intensivos Pediátricos Mechanical Ventilation Liberation Group

OBJECTIVE

To address the current practice of liberating patients from invasive mechanical ventilation in pediatric intensive care units, with a focus on the use of standardized protocols, criteria, parameters, and indications for noninvasive respiratory support postextubation.

METHODS

Electronic research was carried out from November 2021 to May 2022 in Ibero-American pediatric intensive care units. Physicians and respiratory therapists participated, with a single representative for each pediatric intensive care unit included. There were no interventions.

RESULTS

The response rate was 48.9% (138/282), representing 10 Ibero-American countries. Written invasive mechanical ventilation liberation protocols were available in only 34.1% (47/138) of the pediatric intensive care units, and their use was associated with the presence of respiratory therapists (OR 3.85; 95%CI 1.79 - 8.33; p = 0.0008). The most common method of liberation involved a gradual reduction in ventilatory support plus a spontaneous breathing trial (47.1%). The mean spontaneous breathing trial duration was 60 - 120 minutes in 64.8% of the responses. The presence of a respiratory therapist in the pediatric intensive care unit was the only variable associated with the use of a spontaneous breathing trial as the primary method of liberation from invasive mechanical ventilation (OR 5.1; 95%CI 2.1 - 12.5). Noninvasive respiratory support protocols were not frequently used postextubation (40.4%). Nearly half of the respondents (43.5%) reported a preference for using bilevel positive airway pressure as the mode of noninvasive ventilation postextubation.

CONCLUSION

A high proportion of Ibero-American pediatric intensive care units lack liberation protocols. Our study highlights substantial variability in extubation readiness practices, underscoring the need for standardization in this process. However, the presence of a respiratory therapist was associated with increased adherence to guidelines.

Epidemiology of adverse events in Intensive Medicine units

The severity of the critically ill patient, the practice of diagnostic procedures and invasive treatments, the high number of drugs administered, a high volume of data generated during the care of the critically ill patient along with a technical work environment, the stress and workload of work of professionals, are circumstances that favor the appearance of errors, turning Intensive Medicine Services into risk areas for adverse events to occur. Knowing their epidemiology is the first step to improve the safety of the care we provide to our patients, because it allows us to identify risk areas, analyze them and develop strategies to prevent the adverse events, or if this is not possible, be able to manage them. This article analyzes the main studies published to date on incidents related to safety in the field of critically ill patients.

Considerations of invasive mechanical ventilation in prone position. A narrative review

The evidence regarding logistic considerations and safety events associated with prone position ventilation (PPV) is summarized and a flow diagrama for safe provision of mechanical ventilation in the setting of the COVID-19 pandemic is proposed. A review of the literature was conducted in the Medline via Pubmed, Embase, and Lilacs databases, the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, Cochrane Central Register of Randomized Controlled Trials, Cochrane Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effects, ProQuest Nursing and Allied Health Database, and Google scholar. Overall, 31 articles were selected for the analysis. The incidence of PPV-related safety events varies between 1% and 11.9% and the most frequent complications are pressure ulcers and airway complications. Early initiation of enteral nutrition is recommended, and transfers are possible in patients on PPV. There is controversy regarding contraindications and recommendations for PPV. Recommendations for its safe provision are based on expert opinions and the establishment of protocols for healthcare staff training. Clinical studies are required to determine which are the recommendations that should be considered for safe and reproducible PPV use during this pandemic.

ADVERSE EVENTS RELATED TO MECHANICAL VENTILATION IN A PEDIATRIC INTENSIVE CARE UNIT

OBJECTIVE

To identify the prevalence and factors associated with adverse events (AE) related to invasive mechanical ventilation in patients admitted to the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) of a tertiary public hospital.

METHODS

This is a cross-sectional study from July 2016 to June 2018, with data collected throughout patients' routine care in the unit by the care team. Demographic, clinical and ventilatory characteristics and adverse events were analysed. The logistic regression model was used for multivariate analysis regarding the factors associated with AE.

RESULTS

Three hundred and six patients were included, with a total ventilation time of 2,155 days. Adverse events occurred in 66 patients (21.6%), and in 11 of those (16.7%) two AE occurred, totalling 77 events (36 AE per 1000 days of ventilation). The most common AE was post-extubation stridor (25.9%), followed by unplanned extubation (16.9%). Episodes occurred predominantly in the afternoon shift (49.3%) and associated with mild damage (54.6%). Multivariate analysis showed a higher occurrence of AE associated with length of stay of 7 days or more (Odds Ratio [OR]=2.6; 95% confidence interval [95%CI] 1.49-4.66; p=0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

The results of the present study show a significant number of preventable adverse events, especially stridor after extubation and accidental extubation. The higher frequency of these events is associated with longer hospitalization.

Mechanical ventilation in Spain, 1998-2016: Epidemiology and outcomes

PURPOSE

To evaluate changes in the epidemiology of mechanical ventilation in Spain from 1998 to 2016.

DESIGN

A post hoc analysis of four cohort studies was carried out.

SETTING

A total of 138 Spanish ICUs.

PATIENTS

A sample of 4293 patients requiring invasive mechanical ventilation for more than 12h or noninvasive ventilation for more than 1h.

INTERVENTIONS

None.

VARIABLES OF INTEREST

Demographic variables, reason for mechanical ventilation, variables related to ventilatory support (ventilation mode, tidal volume, PEEP, airway pressures), complications during mechanical ventilation, duration of mechanical ventilation, ICU stay and ICU mortality.

RESULTS

There was an increase in severity (SAPSII: 43 points in 1998 vs. 47 points in 2016), changes in the reason for mechanical ventilation (decrease in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and acute respiratory failure secondary to trauma, and increase in neurological disease and post-cardiac arrest). There was an increase in noninvasive mechanical ventilation as the first mode of ventilatory support (p<0.001). Volume control ventilation was the most commonly used mode, with increased support pressure and pressure-regulated volume-controlled ventilation. A decrease in tidal volume was observed (9ml/kg actual b.w. in 1998 and 6.6ml/kg in 2016; p<0.001) as well as an increase in PEEP (3cmH₂O in 1998 and 6cmH₂O in 2016; p<0.001). In-ICU mortality decreased (34% in 1998 and 27% in 2016; p<0.001), without geographical variability (median OR 1.43; p=0.258).

CONCLUSIONS

A significant decrease in mortality was observed in patients ventilated in Spanish ICUs. These changes in mortality could be related to modifications in ventilation strategy to minimize ventilator-induced lung injury.