Internal and emergency medicine
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Anaemia is a highly prevalent condition, which negatively impacts on patients' cardiovascular performance and quality of life. Anaemia is mainly caused by disturbances of iron homeostasis. ⋯ Various mechanistic links between iron homeostasis, anaemia, and pulmonary hypertension have been described and current treatment guidelines suggest regular iron status assessment and the implementation of iron supplementation strategies in these patients. The pathophysiology, diagnostic assessment as well as current and future treatment options concerning iron deficiency with or without anaemia in individuals suffering from pulmonary hypertension are discussed within this review.
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In the last 2-3 decades internists have confronted dramatic changes in the pattern of patients acutely admitted to hospital wards. Internists observed a shift from younger subjects affected by a single organ disease to more complex patients, usually older, with multiple chronic conditions, attended by different specialists, with poor integration and treated with multiple drugs. In this regard, the concept of complex patients is addressed daily in clinical practice even if there is no agreed definition of patient complexity. ⋯ CIRS-SI was also the best predictor of all-cause of post-discharge mortality corrected for age and sex [OR: 2.12 (1.53-2.95)]. CIRS-SI (coefficient ± standard error: 1.23 ± 0.59; p < 0.0381) and CIRS-CI (coefficient ± standard error: 0.27 ± 0.10; p < 0.011) were strong predictors of LOS in comparison with NoC that did not result statistically significant (coefficient ± standard error: 0.04 ± 0.06 p < 0.0561). In conclusion, CIRS assessment of comorbidity burden is a better clinical tool in comparison with the simple count of comorbidities especially considering the length of hospital stay and all-cause mortality in hospitalized elderly patients.
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Observational Study
Infections in out-of-hospital and in-hospital post-cardiac arrest patients.
This study aims to describe infectious complications in both out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) and in-hospital cardiac arrest (IHCA) patients with sustained return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC) and to compare differences in antimicrobial treatment and outcomes between the two groups. This was a retrospective, single-center, observational study. Adult patients (≥ 18 years) with OHCA or IHCA who had sustained ROSC between December 2007 to March 2015 were included. ⋯ We found significantly more infections in IHCA compared to OHCA patients. The most common infection category was respiratory and the most common organism isolated from sputum cultures was Staphylococcus aureus coagulase-positive. The incidence of culture-positive bacteremia was similar in both OHCA and IHCA cohorts but overall lower than previously reported.
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Observational Study
Prevalence and clinical impact of VIral Respiratory tract infections in patients hospitalized for Community-Acquired Pneumonia: the VIRCAP study.
Prevalence and clinical impact of viral respiratory tract infections (VRTIs) on community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) has not been well defined so far. The aims of this study were to investigate the prevalence and the clinical impact of VRTIs in patients with CAP. Prospective study involving adult patients consecutively admitted at medical wards for CAP and tested for VRTIs by real-time PCR on pharyngeal swab. ⋯ Clinical failure and antibiotic therapy duration were similar with regards to the presence of VRTI and the aetiology of CAP. VRTIs can be detected in almost a third of adults with CAP; influenza virus is the most relevant one. VRTI was associated with higher PSI at admission, but it does not affect patients' outcome.
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Prospective evaluation of the quickSOFA score as a screening for sepsis in the emergency department.
In 2016, the new bedside tool quick Sequential (Sepsis-related) Organ Failure Assessment (qSOFA) was presented to identify patients at high risk of developing sepsis or adverse outcome. The aim of this study was to investigate the diagnostic performance of the qSOFA scoring system as a screening in patients presenting at an emergency department (ED) of any cause. Therefore, we compared qSOFA with the systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS) criteria and two modifications of qSOFA score. ⋯ Modification of qSOFA in replacing GCS by other scoring systems recording altered mental status did not improve its sensitivity. The qSOFA score has poor sensitivity to identify patients at risk of developing sepsis and can therefore not be considered as an adequate screening for sepsis in patients presenting to the ED. Furthermore, a positive qSOFA at arrival at the ED showed no sufficient reliability in detecting patients with adverse clinical course.