Fludrocortisone and Hydrocortisone, Alone or in Combination, on In Vivo Hemodynamics and In Vitro Vascular Reactivity in Normal and Endotoxemic Rats: A Randomized Factorial Design Study

The Mineralocorticoid Receptor in the Vasculature: Friend or Foe?

Originally described as the renal aldosterone receptor that regulates sodium homeostasis, it is now clear that mineralocorticoid receptors (MRs) are widely expressed, including in vascular endothelial and smooth muscle cells. Ample data demonstrate that endothelial and smooth muscle cell MRs contribute to cardiovascular disease in response to risk factors (aging, obesity, hypertension, atherosclerosis) by inducing vasoconstriction, vascular remodeling, inflammation, and oxidative stress. Extrapolating from its role in disease, evidence supports beneficial roles of vascular MRs in the context of hypotension by promoting inflammation, wound healing, and vasoconstriction to enhance survival from bleeding or sepsis. Advances in understanding how vascular MRs become activated are also reviewed, describing transcriptional, ligand-dependent, and ligand-independent mechanisms. By synthesizing evidence describing how vascular MRs convert cardiovascular risk factors into disease (the vascular MR as a foe), we postulate that the teleological role of the MR is to coordinate responses to hypotension (the MR as a friend).

Glucocorticoid Treatment in Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome: An Overview on Mechanistic Insights and Clinical Benefit

Acute lung injury/acute respiratory distress syndrome (ALI/ARDS), triggered by various pathogenic factors inside and outside the lungs, leads to diffuse lung injury and can result in respiratory failure and death, which are typical clinical critical emergencies. Severe acute pancreatitis (SAP), which has a poor clinical prognosis, is one of the most common diseases that induces ARDS. When SAP causes the body to produce a storm of inflammatory factors and even causes sepsis, clinicians will face a two-way choice between anti-inflammatory and anti-infection objectives while considering the damaged intestinal barrier and respiratory failure, which undoubtedly increases the difficulty of the diagnosis and treatment of SAP-ALI/ARDS. For a long time, many studies have been devoted to applying glucocorticoids (GCs) to control the inflammatory response and prevent and treat sepsis and ALI/ARDS. However, the specific mechanism is not precise, the clinical efficacy is uneven, and the corresponding side effects are endless. This review discusses the mechanism of action, current clinical application status, effectiveness assessment, and side effects of GCs in the treatment of ALI/ARDS (especially the subtype caused by SAP).

Corticosteroids for Treating Sepsis in Adult Patients: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Objective

Corticosteroids are a common option used in sepsis treatment. However, the efficacy and potential risk of corticosteroids in septic patients have not been well assessed. This review was performed to assess the efficacy and safety of corticosteroids in patients with sepsis.

Methods

PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane library databases were searched from inception to March 2021. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that evaluated the effect of corticosteroids on patients with sepsis were included. The quality of outcomes in the included articles was evaluated using the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation methodology. The data were pooled by using risk ratio (RR) and mean difference (MD). The random-effects model was used to evaluate the pooled MD or RR and 95% confidence intervals (CIs).

Results

Fifty RCTs that included 12,304 patients with sepsis were identified. Corticosteroids were not associated with the mortality in 28-day (RR, 0.94; 95% CI, 0.87–1.02; evidence rank, moderate) and long-term mortality (>60 days) (RR, 0.96; 95% CI, 0.88–1.05) in patients with sepsis (evidence rank, low). However, corticosteroids may exert a significant effect on the mortality in the intensive care unit (ICU) (RR, 0.9; 95% CI, 0.83–0.97), in-hospital (RR, 0.9; 95% CI, 0.82–0.99; evidence rank, moderate) in patients with sepsis or septic shock (evidence rank, low). Furthermore, corticosteroids probably achieved a tiny reduction in the length of hospital stay and ICU. Corticosteroids were associated with a higher risk of hypernatremia and hyperglycemia; furthermore, they appear to have no significant effect on superinfection and gastroduodenal bleeding.

Conclusions

Corticosteroids had no significant effect on the 28-day and long-term mortality; however, they decreased the ICU and hospital mortality. The findings suggest that the clinical corticosteroids may be an effective therapy for patients with sepsis during the short time.

Systematic Review Registration

https://inplasy.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/INPLASY-Protocol-1074-4.pdf

Mineralocorticoid Dysfunction during Critical Illness: A Review of the Evidence

The recent demonstration of the significant reduction in mortality in patients with septic shock treated with adjunctive glucocorticoids combined with fludrocortisone and the effectiveness of angiotensin II in treating vasodilatory shock have renewed interest in the role of the mineralocorticoid axis in critical illness. Glucocorticoids have variable interactions at the mineralocorticoid receptor. Similarly, mineralocorticoid receptor-aldosterone interactions differ from mineralocorticoid receptor-glucocorticoid interactions and predicate receptor-ligand interactions that differ with respect to cellular effects. Hyperreninemic hypoaldosteronism or selective hypoaldosteronism, an impaired adrenal response to increasing renin levels, occurs in a subgroup of hemodynamically unstable critically ill patients. The suggestion is that there is a defect at the level of the adrenal zona glomerulosa associated with a high mortality rate that may represent an adaptive response aimed at increasing cortisol levels. Furthermore, cross-talk exists between angiotensin II and aldosterone, which needs to be considered when employing therapeutic strategies.

Combination of low-dose glucocorticosteroids and mineralocorticoids as adjunct therapy for adult patients with septic shock: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized trials and observational studies

Background:

The role of the combination of glucocorticosteroids and mineralocorticosteroids in treating septic shock is not well-defined. The aim of this study was to perform a systematic review and meta-analysis of the randomized controlled trials and observational studies assessing the effect of low-dose hydrocortisone and fludrocortisone on patients with septic shock.

Materials and Methods:

MEDLINE, Scopus, and Cochrane databases were reviewed. A random effect model meta-analysis was used and I-square was used to assess the heterogeneity. Short-term mortality was chosen as our primary end point. A subgroup analysis was performed including only the randomized controlled trials.

Results:

A total of 10,550 patients were included in this meta-analysis. Administration of the steroid combination was associated with improved short-term mortality (odds ratio, 0.78, confidence interval, 0.64–0.96), intensive care unit mortality, and shock reversal, without increase in steroid-related side effects, such as secondary infection or gastrointestinal hemorrhage.

Conclusion:

This systematic review and meta-analysis showed that use of the combination of glucocorticosteroids and mineralocorticosteroids has a beneficial impact on short-term mortality, intensive care unit mortality, and shock reversal, without increasing the incidence of gastrointestinal hemorrhage or superinfection in patients with septic shock, when used as an adjunct treatment to the established standard of care.

Immune Effects of Corticosteroids in Sepsis

Sepsis, a life-threatening organ dysfunction, results from a dysregulated host response to invading pathogens that may be characterized by overwhelming systemic inflammation or some sort of immune paralysis. Sepsis remains a major cause of morbidity and mortality. Treatment is nonspecific and relies on source control and organ support. Septic shock, the most severe form of sepsis is associated with the highest rate of mortality. Two large multicentre trials, undertaken 15 years apart, found that the combination of hydrocortisone and fludrocortisone significantly reduces mortality in septic shock. The corticosteroids family is composed of several molecules that are usually characterized according to their glucocorticoid and mineralocorticoid power, relative to hydrocortisone. While the immune effects of glucocorticoids whether mediated or not by the intracellular glucocorticoid receptor have been investigated for several decades, it is only very recently that potential immune effects of mineralocorticoids via non-renal mineralocorticoid receptors have gained popularity. We reviewed the respective role of glucocorticoids and mineralocorticoids in counteracting sepsis-associated dysregulated immune systems.