The importance of high total body water/fat free mass ratio and serial changes in body composition for predicting hospital mortality in patients with severe pneumonia: a prospective cohort study.

Purpose: This study aimed to investigate the impact of body composition variables on hospital mortality compared to other predictive factors among patients with severe pneumonia. Additionally, we aimed to monitor the dynamic changes in body composition variables over the course on days 1, 3, and 8 after intensive care unit (ICU) admission for each patient.

Methods: We conducted a prospective study, enrolling patients with severe pneumonia admitted to the medical intensive care unit at Kaohsiung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital from February 2020 to April 2022.

E-cadherin expression in the tumor microenvironment of advanced epidermal growth factor receptor-mutant lung adenocarcinoma and the association with prognosis.

Background: The expression of programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1), tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs), E-cadherin, and vimentin in lung cancer tumor microenvironment is known to impact patient survival or response to therapy. The expression of these biomarkers may also differ between primary lung tumors and brain metastatic tumors. In this study, we investigated the interaction between these biomarkers in lung tumors with or without concomitant brain metastasis and the interaction with paired brain metastatic tumors.

Association of Hypernatremia with Immune Profiles and Clinical Outcomes in Adult Intensive Care Unit Patients with Sepsis.

Both hypernatremia and an abnormal immune response may increase hospital mortality in patients with sepsis. This study examined the association of hypernatremia with abnormal immune response and mortality in 520 adult patients with sepsis in an intensive care unit (ICU). We compared the mortality and ex vivo lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced inflammatory response differences among patients with hyponatremia, eunatremia, and hypernatremia, as well as between patients with acquired hypernatremia on ICU day 3 and those with sustained eunatremia over first three ICU days.

The Survival of Septic Patients with Compensated Liver Cirrhosis Is Not Inferior to That of Septic Patients without Liver Cirrhosis: A Propensity Score Matching Analysis.

Background: We aimed to determine whether septic patients with liver cirrhosis (LC) had worse survival than septic patients without liver cirrhosis (WLC). We also investigated the survival of septic patients with compensated liver cirrhosis (CLC) and decompensated liver cirrhosis (DLC). Methods: This study enrolled 776 consecutive adult patients with sepsis admitted to the medical intensive care units of a tertiary referral hospital.

Body Mass Index, Weight Loss, and Mortality Risk in Advanced-Stage Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer Patients: A Focus on EGFR Mutation.

Body mass index (BMI) influences the prognosis of patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), including both early-stage and late-stage NSCLC patients that are undergoing chemotherapies. However, earlier research on the relationship between BMI and survival in patients taking epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR)-tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) yielded contradictory results. These publications either had a limited number of patients or were getting TKIs in various lines of therapy, which might explain why the outcomes were contradictory.

Impact of Body Mass Index on the Survival of Patients with Sepsis with Different Modified NUTRIC Scores.

Nutritional status affects the survival of patients with sepsis. This retrospective study analyzed the impact of body mass index (BMI) and modified nutrition risk in critically ill (mNUTRIC) scores on survival of these patients. Data of 1291 patients with sepsis admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) were extracted.

Risk factors and associated outcomes of ventilator-associated events developed in 28 days among sepsis patients admitted to intensive care unit.

We hypothesized that Ventilator-Associated Event (VAE) within 28 days upon admission to medical intensive care units (ICUs) can be a predictor for poor outcomes in sepsis patients. We aimed to determine the risk factors and associated outcomes of VAE. A total of 453 consecutive mechanically ventilated (MV) sepsis patients were enrolled.

Impact of corticosteroid treatment on clinical outcomes of influenza-associated ARDS: a nationwide multicenter study.

Background: Corticosteroid treatment has been widely used in the treatment of septic shock, influenza, and ARDS, although some previous studies discourage its use in severe influenza patients. This multicenter retrospective cohort study conducted in the intensive care units (ICUs) of eight medical centers across Taiwan aims to determine the real-world status of corticosteroid treatment in patients with influenza-associated acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and its impact on clinical outcomes. Between October 2015 and March 2016, consecutive ICU patients with virology-proven influenza infections who fulfilled ARDS and received invasive mechanical ventilation were enrolled.

Incorporation of dynamic segmented neutrophil-to-monocyte ratio with leukocyte count for sepsis risk stratification.

The association between sepsis and segmented neutrophil-to-monocyte (SeMo) ratio is unclear. We postulated that an increase in dynamic SeMo ratio measurement can be applied in risk stratification. This retrospective study included 727 consecutive sepsis patients in medical intensive care units (ICUs), including a subpopulation of 153 patients.

Effect of do-not-resuscitate orders on patients with sepsis in the medical intensive care unit: a retrospective, observational and propensity score-matched study in a tertiary referral hospital in Taiwan.

Objective: The aim of this study was to determine whether do-not-resuscitate (DNR) orders affect outcomes in patients with sepsis admitted to intensive care unit (ICU).

Design: This is a retrospective observational study.

Participants: We enrolled 796 consecutive adult intensive care patients at Kaohsiung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, a 2700-bed tertiary teaching hospital in southern Taiwan.

Insufficient Nutrition and Mortality Risk in Septic Patients Admitted to ICU with a Focus on Immune Dysfunction.

Immune dysfunction is seen both in sepsis patients and in those with malnutrition. This study aimed to determine whether insufficient nutrition and immune dysfunction have a synergistic effect on mortality in critically ill septic patients. We conducted a prospective observational study from adult sepsis patients admitted to intensive care units (ICUs) between August 2013 and June 2016.

Histone deacetylase 2 (HDAC2) attenuates lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced inflammation by regulating PAI-1 expression.

Background: Sepsis is a life-threatening organ dysfunction caused by dysregulated host response to infection, and is primarily characterized by an uncontrolled systemic inflammatory response. In the present study, we developed an effective adjunct therapy mediated by a novel mechanism, to attenuate overt inflammation. LPS-treated macrophages were adopted as an in vitro model of endotoxin-induced inflammation during sepsis.

Development and validation of immune dysfunction score to predict 28-day mortality of sepsis patients.

Background: Sepsis-induced immune dysfunction ranging from cytokines storm to immunoparalysis impacts outcomes. Monitoring immune dysfunction enables better risk stratification and mortality prediction and is mandatory before widely application of immunoadjuvant therapies. We aimed to develop and validate a scoring system according to patients' immune dysfunction status for 28-day mortality prediction.

Immune profiles and clinical outcomes between sepsis patients with or without active cancer requiring admission to intensive care units.

Background: Immunoparalysis was observed in both patients with cancer and sepsis. In cancer patients, Cytotoxic T lymphocyte antigen-4 and programmed cell death protein 1/programmed death-ligand 1 axis are two key components of immunoparalysis. Several emerging therapies against these two axes gained significant clinical benefit.

The impact of de novo liver metastasis on clinical outcome in patients with advanced non-small-cell lung cancer.

Liver metastasis has been found to affect outcome in prostate cancer and colorectal cancer, but its role in lung cancer is unclear. The current study aimed to evaluate the impact of de novo liver metastasis (DLM) on stage IV non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) outcomes and to examine whether tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKI) reverse poor prognosis in patients with DLM and epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR)-mutant NSCLC. Among 1392 newly diagnosed NSCLC patients, 490 patients with stage IV disease treated between November 2010 and March 2014 at Kaohsiung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital were included.

Risk factors of multidrug-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii recurrence after successful eradication in ventilated patients.

Background: Clinically, multidrug-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii (MDR-AB) recurrence is found in some patients although identified as successfully eradicated. We aim to discover the characteristics of patients with MDR-AB recurrence in the respiratory tract.

Methods: We retrospectively collected 106 chronic respiratory failure patients with MDR-AB harvest in pulmonary secretion culture.