Management of Refractory Status Epilepticus: An International Cohort Study (MORSE CODe) Analysis of Patients Managed in the ICU

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES

Status epilepticus that continues after the initial benzodiazepine and a second anticonvulsant medication is known as refractory status epilepticus (RSE). Management is highly variable because adequately powered clinical trials are missing. We aimed to determine whether propofol and midazolam were equally effective in controlling RSE in the intensive care unit, focusing on management in resource-limited settings.

METHODS

Patients with RSE treated with midazolam or propofol between January 2015 and December 2018 were retrospectively identified among 9 centers across 4 continents from upper-middle-income economies in Latin America and high-income economies in North America, Europe, and Asia. Demographics, Status Epilepticus Severity Score, etiology, treatment details, and discharge modified Rankin Scale (mRS) were collected. The primary outcome measure was good functional outcome defined as a mRS score of 0-2 at hospital discharge.

RESULTS

Three hundred eighty-seven episodes of RSE (386 patients) were included, with 162 (42%) from upper-middle-income and 225 (58%) from high-income economies. Three hundred six (79%) had acute and 79 (21%) remote etiologies. Initial RSE management included midazolam in 266 (69%) and propofol in 121 episodes (31%). Seventy episodes (26%) that were initially treated with midazolam and 42 (35%) with propofol required the addition of a second anesthetic to treat RSE. Baseline characteristics and outcomes of patients treated with midazolam or propofol were similar. Breakthrough (odds ratio [OR] 1.6, 95% CI 1.3-2.0) and withdrawal seizures (OR 2.0, 95% CI 1.7-2.5) were associated with an increased number of days requiring continuous intravenous anticonvulsant medications (cIV-ACMs). Prolonged EEG monitoring was associated with fewer days of cIV-ACMs (1-24 hours OR 0.5, 95% CI 0.2-0.9, and >24 hours OR 0.7, 95% CI 0.5-1.0; reference EEG <1 hour). This association was seen in both, high-income and upper-middle-income economies, but was particularly prominent in high-income countries. One hundred ten patients (28%) were dead, and 80 (21%) had good functional outcomes at hospital discharge.

DISCUSSION

Outcomes of patients with RSE managed in the intensive care unit with propofol or midazolam infusions are comparable. Prolonged EEG monitoring may allow physicians to decrease the duration of anesthetic infusions safely, but this will depend on the implementation of RSE management protocols. Goal-directed management approaches including EEG targets may hold promise for patients with RSE.

CLASSIFICATION OF EVIDENCE

This study provides Class III data that propofol and midazolam are equivalently efficacious for RSE.

Neurologic Outcomes of Survivors of COVID-19-Associated Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome Requiring Intubation

OBJECTIVES

To describe 3-6-month neurologic outcomes of survivors of COVID-19-associated acute respiratory distress syndrome, invasively ventilated in the ICU.

DESIGN

A bicentric prospective study during the two first waves of the pandemic (March to May and September to December, 2020).

SETTING

Two academic hospital ICUs, Paris, France.

PATIENTS

Adult COVID-19-associated acute respiratory distress syndrome survivors, invasively ventilated in the ICU, were eligible for a neurologic consultation between 3 and 6 months post ICU discharge.

INTERVENTIONS

Follow-up by face-to-face neurologic consultation.

MEASURES AND MAIN RESULTS

The primary endpoint was favorable functional outcome defined by a modified Rankin scale score less than 2, indicating survival with no significant disability. Secondary endpoints included mild cognitive impairment (Montreal Cognitive Assessment score < 26), ICU-acquired weakness (Medical Research Council score < 48), anxiety and depression (Hospital Anxiety and Depression score > 7), and posttraumatic stress disorder (posttraumatic stress disorder checklist for Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders 5 score > 30). Of 54 eligible survivors, four non-French-speaking patients were excluded, eight patients were lost-to-follow-up, and one died during follow-up. Forty-one patients were included. Time between ICU discharge and neurologic consultation was 3.8 months (3.6-5.9 mo). A favorable functional outcome was observed in 16 patients (39%) and mild cognitive impairment in 17 of 33 patients tested (52%). ICU-acquired weakness, depression or anxiety, and posttraumatic stress disorder were reported in six of 37 cases (16%), eight of 31 cases (26%), and two of 27 cases (7%), respectively. Twenty-nine patients (74%) required rehabilitation (motor, cognitive, or psychologic). ICU and hospital lengths of stay, tracheostomy, and corticosteroids were negatively associated with favorable outcome. By contrast, use of alpha-2 agonists during ICU stay was associated with favorable outcome.

CONCLUSIONS

COVID-19-associated acute respiratory distress syndrome requiring intubation led to slight-to-severe functional disability in about 60% of survivors 4 months after ICU discharge. Cognitive impairment, muscle weakness, and psychologic symptoms were frequent. A large multicenter study is warranted to allow identification of modifiable factors for improving long-term outcome.

Survival and consciousness recovery are better in the minimally conscious state than in the vegetative state

BACKGROUND

The prognosis value of early clinical diagnosis of consciousness impairment is documented by an extremely limited number of studies, whereas it may convey important information to guide medical decisions.

OBJECTIVE

We aimed at determining if patients diagnosed at an early stage (<90 days after brain injury) as being in the minimally conscious state (MCS) have a better prognosis than patients in the vegetative state/Unresponsive Wakefulness syndrome (VS/UWS), independent of care limitations or withdrawal decisions.

METHODS

Patients hospitalized in ICUs of the Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital (Paris, France) from November 2008 to January 2011 were included and evaluated behaviourally with standardized assessment and with the Coma Recovery Scale-Revised as being either in the VS/UWS or in the MCS. They were then prospectively followed until 1July 2011 to evaluate their outcome with the GOSE. We compared survival function and outcomes of these two groups.

RESULTS

Both survival function and outcomes, including consciousness recovery, were significantly better in the MCS group. This difference of outcome still holds when considering only patients still alive at the end of the study.

CONCLUSIONS

Early accurate clinical diagnosis of VS/UWS or MCS conveys a strong prognostic value of survival and of consciousness recovery.