Causes and outcomes of finger ischemia in hospitalized patients in the intensive care unit

Exploring the norepinephrine to angiotensin II conversion ratio in patients with vasodilatory hypotension: A post-hoc analysis of the ARAMIS trial

PURPOSE

Angiotensin II is approved for catecholamine-refractory vasodilatory shock but the conversion dose ratio from norepinephrine to angiotensin II remains unclear.

METHODS

We conducted a post-hoc analysis of the Acute Renal effects of Angiotensin II Management in Shock (ARAMIS) trial involving patients with vasodilatory hypotension. We determined the norepinephrine equivalent dose immediately prior to angiotensin II initiation and calculated the conversion dose ratio between norepinephrine and angiotensin II. We performed subgroup analyses based on recent exposure to angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs) and renin levels at baseline.

RESULTS

In 37 patients, the median conversion dose ratio between norepinephrine equivalent and angiotensin II was to 10:1 for norepinephrine bitartrate (5:1 for norepinephrine base). The conversion ratio was not affected by the baseline renin, with a median ratio of 10 (7-21) in the high renin group versus 12 (5-22) in the low renin group. Finally, exposure to ARBs prior admission appeared to diminish the conversion ratio with a median ratio of 7 (4-13) in ARB patients vs. 12 (7-22) in non-ARB patients.

CONCLUSIONS

The norepinephrine to angiotensin II conversion dose ratio is 10:1 in a vasodilatory hypotension population. These findings can guide clinicians and researchers in the use, dosing, and study of angiotensin II in critical care.

Vasopressin-Induced Gangrene of the Bilateral Foot Digits and Right Index Finger Managed With Platelet-Rich Plasma Treatment

Bilateral foot digit gangrene generated by vasopressin is a serious complication for which management and treatment choices are extremely difficult. This case report presents a case of vasopressin-induced gangrene that was successfully treated with platelet-rich plasma (PRP) infiltration. A 20-year-old female patient came with a history of vasopressin treatment, causing bilateral foot digit gangrene and increasing necrosis. The patient's health quickly declined, and conventional care techniques had no effect on enhancing tissue perfusion or stopping the gangrene from getting worse. In our study, we have chosen to use PRP infiltration as an experimental therapeutic technique in light of the restricted choices available. This case study demonstrates the possibility of PRP infiltration as a cutting-edge and effective treatment for vasopressin-induced bilateral foot digit gangrene. The potential of PRP to stimulate angiogenesis, tissue regeneration, and wound healing is essential for optimizing the patient's results. For vasopressin-induced gangrene, more studies are required to evaluate the efficacy of PRP infiltration as a common therapy approach. This case study highlights the important role that PRP infiltration plays in enhancing tissue perfusion, stopping the advancement of necrosis, and promoting recovery.

What Factors Are Associated With Arterial Line-Related Limb Ischemia in Patients on Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation? A Single-Center Retrospective Cohort Study

OBJECTIVES

The primary purpose of this study was to identify factors associated with the development of arterial line-related limb ischemia in patients on extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO). The authors also sought to characterize and report the outcomes of patients who developed arterial line-related limb ischemia.

DESIGN

Retrospective cohort study.

SETTING

A single academic tertiary referral ECMO center.

PARTICIPANTS

Consecutive patients who were treated with ECMO over 6 years.

INTERVENTIONS

Use of arterial line.

MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS

A total of 278 consecutive ECMO patients were included, with 19 (7%) patients developing arterial line-related limb ischemia during the ECMO run. Postcannulation Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 1.20, 95% CI 1.08-1.32), Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation-II (aOR 0.84, 95% CI 0.74-0.95), and adjusted Vasopressor Dose Equivalence (aOR 1.03, 95% CI 1.01-1.05) scores were independently associated with the development of arterial line-associated limb ischemia. A SOFA score of ≥17 at the time of ECMO cannulation had an 80% sensitivity and 87% specificity for predicting arterial line-related limb ischemia.

CONCLUSIONS

Arterial line-related limb ischemia is much more common in ECMO patients than in the typical intensive care unit setting. The SOFA score may be useful in identifying which patients may be at risk for arterial line-related limb ischemia. As this was a single-center retrospective study, these results are inherently exploratory, and prospective multicenter studies are necessary to validate these results.

Emerging concepts in the care of patients with cirrhosis and septic shock

Septic shock impacts approximately 6% of hospitalized patients with cirrhosis and is associated with high rates of morbidity and mortality. Although a number of landmark clinical trials have paved the way for incremental improvements in the diagnosis and management of septic shock in the general population, patients with cirrhosis have largely been excluded from these studies and critical knowledge gaps continue to impact the care of these individuals. In this review, we discuss nuances in the care of patients with cirrhosis and septic shock using a pathophysiology-based approach. We illustrate that septic shock may be challenging to diagnose in this population in the context of factors such as chronic hypotension, impaired lactate metabolism, and concomitant hepatic encephalopathy. Furthermore, we demonstrate that the application of routine interventions such as intravenous fluids, vasopressors, antibiotics, and steroids should be carefully considered among those with decompensated cirrhosis in light of hemodynamic, metabolic, hormonal, and immunologic disturbances. We propose that future research should include and characterize patients with cirrhosis in a systematic manner, and clinical practice guidelines may need to be refined accordingly.

Acute Upper Extremity Arterial Occlusion Diagnosed on POCUS in the Emergency Department

Upper extremity acute limb ischemia (ALI) is a limb-threatening and potentially lethal pathology that is most commonly caused by vascular embolization. Outcomes of limb ischemia are time-sensitive due to the correlation between a longer time from symptom onset to intervention with a vastly higher risk of amputation. In this report, point of care ultrasound (POCUS) was utilized to rapidly diagnose a patient with a proximal right brachial artery embolic occlusion, prompting expedited surgical consultation and successful embolectomy. POCUS can provide a focused vascular examination of the limbs to expedite diagnosis of time-sensitive ALI and facilitate timely medical intervention and surgical consultation.

An Overview of the Treatment Strategies of Extremities Ischemia in the Intensive Care Unit

OBJECTIVES

 To investigate the effect of the peripheral block on peripheral ischemia on the extremities of patients in the intensive care unit (ICU).

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Sixty-two patients with ischemic peripheral vascular disease were divided retrospectively into two groups; Group 1 (patients who underwent USG-guided infraclavicular or femoral block, n=20) and Group 2 (patients who did not experience any block, n=42). The demographic characteristics of the patients, the diagnosis of hospitalization, the day when the circulatory disorder developed, laboratory tests at the time of diagnosis, other medical treatments applied, presence of inotropic support, the response of ischemia on extremities, amputation, duration of hospital stay, discharge and mortality were compared.

RESULTS

The most common reason for hospitalization was cerebrovascular disease. There was no statistical difference between the groups regarding age, gender, height, body weight, and diagnosis. There was no statistical difference between the groups regarding hematocrit, lactate, creatinine, and albumin values, the day when the peripheral ischemia developed in extremities, inotropic and prednisolone use, presence of cannulation, length of hospital stays, and mortality. The number of patients discharged from the intensive care unit in Group 1 was significantly higher than in Group 2 (p=0.048). Amputation was performed on one patient in Group 1 and two patients in Group 2. There was a decrease in peripheral ischemia in 14 (70%) of the patients in Group 1 and 25 (59.5%) of the patients in Group 2.

CONCLUSIONS

Targeted peripheral block techniques for peripheral circulatory disorders for selected ICU patients in conjunction with preventive and medical treatments may decrease peripheral ischemia in extremities and increase ICU discharge.

Management of Vasopressor-Induced Acute Limb Ischemia (VIALI) in Septic Shock

Vasopressors used in critically ill patients with refractory shock poses a serious risk of non-occlusive peripheral limb ischemia leading to tissue necrosis and amputation. Acute limb ischemia is associated with high morbidity and mortality. Evidence-based medical literature is scarce on the prevention and management of vasopressor-induced acute limb ischemia (VIALI). Despite being a well-known and frequent complication of vasopressors, there is no standardized guideline for the prevention and management of vasopressor-induced limb ischemia. Vasopressors are required for the management of refractory shock which is defined as hypotension not responsive to intravenous fluid resuscitation alone. Distributive shock, which includes septic shock, causes inadequate tissue perfusion in adjunct with vasopressor use and is the most common cause of non-occlusive peripheral limb ischemia. This case study will focus on how early recognition and prompt treatment of VIALI are crucial in minimizing tissue necrosis and preventing amputations. We present a case of a middle-aged woman who developed distributive shock from sepsis of a urinary source secondary to obstructive uropathy (ureteral calculi). She presented with refractory shock and continued to remain in shock while undergoing emergent rigid cystoscopy with the placement of a ureteral stent. Despite adequate volume resuscitation, she required high doses of vasopressors resulting in peripheral extremity ischemia and necrosis of all her fingers and toes. By promptly initiating mitigation and preventive management strategies, we succeeded in minimizing tissue ischemia and reducing morbidity resulting from iatrogenic vasopressor-induced peripheral non-occlusive ischemia. These strategies include but are not limited to external warming of bilateral lower extremities, nitroglycerin paste application over the entire extremity, arterial assist pump, and low-dose therapeutic anticoagulation. The novel use of the arterial pump in acutely ischemic lower extremities likely helped salvage the toes which appeared to be at high risk of amputation.

Vasopressor Choice and Timing in Vasodilatory Shock

This article is one of ten reviews selected from the Annual Update in Intensive Care and Emergency Medicine 2022. Other selected articles can be found online at https://www.biomedcentral.com/collections/annualupdate2022 . Further information about the Annual Update in Intensive Care and Emergency Medicine is available from https://link.springer.com/bookseries/8901 .

Acute limb ischemia in a patient with Covid-19 pneumonia: a case report

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has emerged as a pandemic across the world. Hypercoagulability status in COVID-19 is one of the causes of complication from severe COVID-19 with a high risk of arterial thrombosis. Acute Limb Ischemia is a vascular emergency caused by sudden decrease in the arterial perfusion. We report the case of a 53-year-old male patient with COVID-19 Pneumonia, diagnosed with Acute Limb Ischemia. From clinical examination, which included anamnesis, physical examination, and laboratory results as well as chest X-rays, a suspicion of Acute Limb Ischemia was found in a patient with COVID-19 pneumonia. The SARS-CoV-2 real time PCR examination showed positive results. In this patient, the diagnosis of Acute Limb Ischemia with Covid-19 Pneumonia was established through a multidisciplinary approach covering the fields of pulmonology, cardiology, and thoracic and cardiovascular surgery.

Starfish Procedure

For those patients with partial hand level amputation who would benefit from myoelectric prosthetic digits for enhanced prehensile function, the Starfish Procedure provides muscle transfers, which allow for the generation of intuitively controlled electromyographic signals for individual digital control with minimal myoelectric cross-talk. Thoughtful preoperative planning allows for creation of multiple sources of high-quality myoelectric signal in a single operation, which does not require microsurgery, providing for wide applicability to hand surgeons of all backgrounds.

Digital Ischemia in COVID-19 Patients: Case Report

As coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) continues to cause an immense burden on the global health care systems, it is crucial to understand the breadth of this disease process. Recent reports identified hypercoagulability in a subset of critically ill patients and extremity ischemia in an even smaller cohort. Because abnormal coagulation parameters and extremity ischemia have been shown to correlate with poor disease prognosis, understanding how to treat these patients is crucial. To better describe the identification and management of this phenomenon, we present 2 cases of critically ill patients with COVID-19 who developed fingertip ischemia while in the intensive care unit.

COVID-19: A Personalized Cardiometabolic Approach for Reducing Complications and Costs. The Role of Aging beyond Topics

COVID 19 is much more than an infectious disease by SARS-CoV-2 followed by a disproportionate immune response. An older age, diabetes and history of cardiovascular disease, especially hypertension, but also chronic heart failure and coronary artery disease among others, are between the most important risk factors. In addition, during the hospitalization both hyperglycaemia and heart failure are frequent. Less frequent are acute coronary syndrome, arrhythmias and stroke. Accordingly, not all prolonged stays or even deaths are due directly to SARS-CoV-2. To our knowledge, this is the first review, focusing both on cardiovascular and metabolic aspects of this dreadful disease, in an integrated and personalized way, following the guidelines of the Cardiometabolic Health/Medicine. Therefore, current personalized aspects such as ACEIs and ARBs, the place of statins and the most appropriate management of heart failure in diabetics are analysed. Aging, better than old age, as a dynamic process, is also considered in this review for the first time in the literature, and not only as a risk factor attributed to cardiovascular and non-cardiovascular comorbidities. Immunosenescence is also approached to build healthier elders, so they can resist present and future infectious diseases, and not only in epidemics or pandemics. In addition, to do this we must start knowing the molecular mechanisms that underlying Aging process in general, and immunosenescence in particular. Surprisingly, the endoplasmic reticulum stress and autophagy are implicated in both process. Finally, with a training in all the aspects covered in this review, not only the hospital stay, complications and costs of this frightening disease in high-risk population should be reduced. Likely, this paper will open a gate to the future for open-minded physicians.