Circulating endothelial extracellular vesicle signatures correspond with ICU requirement: an exploratory study in COVID-19 patients.

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) represent nanometer-sized, subcellular spheres, that are released from almost any cell type and carry a wide variety of biologically relevant cargo. In severe cases of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and other states of systemic pro-inflammatory activation, EVs, and their cargo can serve as conveyors and indicators for disease severity and progression. This information may help distinguish individuals with a less severe manifestation of the disease from patients who exhibit severe acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and require intensive care measures.

Accuracy of a Dual-Sensor Heat-Flux (DHF) Non-Invasive Core Temperature Sensor in Pediatric Patients Undergoing Surgery.

Accurate temperature measurement is crucial for the perioperative management of pediatric patients, and non-invasive thermometry is necessary when invasive methods are infeasible. A prospective observational study was conducted on 57 patients undergoing elective surgery. Temperatures were measured using a dual-sensor heat-flux (DHF) thermometer (Tcore™) and a rectal temperature probe (TRec), and the agreement between the two measurements was assessed.

Use of Recombinant Activated Factor VII in Bleeding Lung Transplant Patients Undergoing Perioperative ECMO Therapy.

Background: Hemostasis in critically ill patients represents a fragile balance between hypocoagulation and hypercoagulation, and is influenced by various factors. Perioperative use of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO)-increasingly used in lung transplantation-further destabilizes this balance, not least due to systemic anticoagulation. In the case of massive hemorrhage, guidelines recommend considering recombinant activated Factor VII (rFVIIa) as an ultima ratio treatment only after several preconditions of hemostasis have been established.

Subcutaneous Enoxaparin for Systemic Anticoagulation of COVID-19 Patients During Extracorporeal Life Support.

Background: Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, with an inherent requirement for anticoagulation to avoid circuit thrombosis, is a key element in the treatment of respiratory failure associated with COVID-19. Anticoagulation remains challenging, the standard of care being intravenous continuous administration of unfractionated heparin. Yet regimens vary.

Assay validity of point-of-care platelet function tests in thrombocytopenic blood samples.

Introduction: Point-of-care (POC) platelet function tests are faster and easier to perform than in-depth assessment by flow cytometry. At low platelet counts, however, POC tests are prone to assess platelet function incorrectly. Lower limits of platelet count required to obtain valid test results were defined and a testing method to facilitate comparability between different tests was established.

Anti-factor Xa Activity Is Not Associated With Venous Thromboembolism in Critically Ill Patients Receiving Enoxaparin for Thromboprophylaxis: A Retrospective Observational Study.

Background: Anti-factor Xa activity has been suggested as a surrogate parameter for judging the effectiveness of pharmacological thromboprophylaxis with low molecular weight heparins in critically ill patients. However, this practice is not supported by evidence associating low anti-factor Xa activity with venous thromboembolism.

Methods: We performed a retrospective observational study including 1,352 critically ill patients admitted to 6 intensive care units of the Medical University of Vienna, Austria between 01/2015 and 12/2018.

Duration of invasive mechanical ventilation prior to extracorporeal membrane oxygenation is not associated with survival in acute respiratory distress syndrome caused by coronavirus disease 2019.

Background: Duration of invasive mechanical ventilation (IMV) prior to extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) affects outcome in acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). In coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) related ARDS, the role of pre-ECMO IMV duration is unclear. This single-centre, retrospective study included critically ill adults treated with ECMO due to severe COVID-19-related ARDS between 01/2020 and 05/2021.

Comparison of the New Viscoelastic Coagulation Analyzer ClotPro® With ROTEM® Delta and Conventional Coagulation Tests in Critically Ill Patients With COVID-19.

Viscoelastic coagulation testing has been suggested to help manage coagulopathy in critically ill patients with COVID-19. However, results from different viscoelastic devices are not readily comparable. ClotPro® is a novel thromboelastometry analyzer offering a wider range of commercially available assays.

Monitoring of Enoxaparin during Hemodialysis Covered by Regional Citrate Anticoagulation in Acute Kidney Injury: A Prospective Cohort Study.

Background: Current guidelines recommend the monitoring of anti-factor Xa (anti-Xa) levels to avoid an accumulation of low-molecular-weight heparins in patients with acute kidney injury, but there is no evidence on how to proceed with such monitoring during continuous renal replacement therapy. Against this background, we investigated the potential accumulation of enoxaparin administered subcutaneously for venous thromboembolism prophylaxis in critically ill patients during continuous renal replacement therapy covered by regional citrate anticoagulation.

Methods: Anti-Xa levels were measured at baseline (≤12 h before renal replacement therapy) and on three consecutive days (A to C) when enoxaparin had reached trough levels.

Cardiac Output Assessments in Anesthetized Children: Dynamic Capnography Versus Esophageal Doppler.

Background: The objective of this study was to compare esophageal Doppler cardiac output (COEDM) against the reference method effective pulmonary blood flow cardiac output (COEPBF), for agreement of absolute values and ability to detect change in cardiac output (CO) in pediatric surgical patients. Furthermore, the relationship between these 2 methods and noninvasive blood pressure (NIBP) parameters was evaluated.

Methods: Fifteen children American Society of Anesthesiology (ASA) I and II (median age, 8 months; median weight, 9 kg) scheduled for surgery were investigated in this prospective observational cohort study.

Thrombin Generation and Platelet Function in ICU Patients Undergoing CVVHD Using Regional Citrate Anticoagulation.

To investigate pro- and anticoagulant alterations in uremic critically ill patients prior to and during continuous renal replacement therapy. In addition to the conventional thrombin generation assay (TGA), we performed a thrombomodulin-modified variant to better elucidate procoagulant imbalances. Platelet function was determined via multiple electrode aggregometry (MEA) to round off hemostatic analysis.

Effect of Goal-Directed Crystalloid versus Colloid Administration on Perioperative Hemostasis in Partial Hepatectomy: A Randomized, Controlled Trial.

The use of colloids may impair hemostatic capacity. However, it remains unclear whether this also holds true when colloids are administered in a goal-directed manner. The aim of the present study was to assess the effect of goal-directed fluid management with 6% hydroxyethyl starch 130/0.

Risk of Clinically Relevant Venous Thromboembolism in Critically Ill Patients With COVID-19: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Early during the course of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, reports suggested alarmingly high incidences for thromboembolic events in critically ill patients with COVID-19. However, the clinical relevance of these events was not reported in several studies. Additionally, more recent research showed contradictory results and suggested substantially lower rates of venous thromboembolism.

Primary spread of caudal blockade in children: the possible limiting role of the lumbar spinal cord enlargement (tumenescence) in combination with the cerebrospinal fluid rebound mechanism.

Background: Despite being the most frequently used pediatric nerve block, certain aspects of the initial intraspinal spread of local anesthetics when performing a caudal block need further elucidation. The fact that injected volumes of 0.7-1.

Establishing reference ranges of cord blood: point-of-care hemostatic function assessment in preterm and term neonates.

Background: Thrombelastometry, allowing timely assessment of global hemostatic function, is increasingly used to guide hemostatic interventions in bleeding patients. Reference values are available for adults and children, including infants but not neonates immediately after birth.

Methods: Neonates were grouped as preterm (30 + 0 to 36 + 6 weeks/days) and term (37 + 0 to 39 + 6 weeks/days).

Low molecular weight heparin versus unfractioned heparin for anticoagulation during perioperative extracorporeal membrane oxygenation: A single center experience in 102 lung transplant patients.

Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) is gaining importance in the perioperative management of lung transplant patients. To date, the ideal substance for anticoagulation of ECMO patients is still a matter of debate. In this study, we describe our experience with the use of low molecular weight heparin (LMWH) in comparison with unfractioned heparin (UFH) in lung transplant patients undergoing perioperative ECMO support.

Caudal epidural blocks in paediatric patients: a review and practical considerations.

Caudal epidural blockade in children is one of the most widely administered techniques of regional anaesthesia. Recent clinical studies have answered major pharmacodynamic and pharmacokinetic questions, thus providing the scientific background for safe and effective blocks in daily clinical practice and demonstrating that patient selection can be expanded to range from extreme preterm births up to 50 kg of body weight. This narrative review discusses the main findings in the current literature with regard to patient selection (sub-umbilical vs mid-abdominal indications, contraindications, low-risk patients with spinal anomalies); anatomical considerations (access problems, age and body positioning, palpation for needle insertion); technical considerations (verification of needle position by ultrasound vs landmarks vs 'whoosh' or 'swoosh' testing); training and equipment requirements (learning curve, needle types, risk of tissue spreading); complications and safety (paediatric regional anaesthesia, caudal blocks); local anaesthetics (bupivacaine vs ropivacaine, risk of toxicity in children, management of toxic events); adjuvant drugs (clonidine, dexmedetomidine, opioids, ketamine); volume dosing (dermatomal reach, cranial rebound); caudally accessed lumbar or thoracic anaesthesia (contamination risk, verifying catheter placement); and postoperative pain.

Comparison of ROTEM parameters from venous and intraosseous blood.

Rotational thromboelastometry is recommended to guide haemostatic therapy in trauma-related coagulopathy. In the case of unsuccessful venepuncture, intraosseous access allows immediate administration of drugs and volume replacement. Feasibility of rotational thromboelastometry from intraosseous blood has not yet been investigated in humans.

Diagnostic and therapeutic approach in adult patients with traumatic brain injury receiving oral anticoagulant therapy: an Austrian interdisciplinary consensus statement.

There is a high degree of uncertainty regarding optimum care of patients with potential or known intake of oral anticoagulants and traumatic brain injury (TBI). Anticoagulation therapy aggravates the risk of intracerebral hemorrhage but, on the other hand, patients take anticoagulants because of an underlying prothrombotic risk, and this could be increased following trauma. Treatment decisions must be taken with due consideration of both these risks.

Thrombin generation in patients with severe thermal injury.

Background: Severe burns can induce a hypercoagulable state which is not depicted in conventional coagulation assays. The thrombin generation assay allows global assessment of coagulation and can identify hypercoagulability. We report changes in thrombin generation in patients after severe burn injury.

Point-of-Care Testing in Burn Patients.

Severe burn injury has an impact on the coagulation system, but a unique definition regarding these changes is still missing. The results of conventional coagulation assays (CCAs) measured in daily clinical practice are often interpreted as coagulopathic, which implies a bleeding tendency. However, viscoelastic coagulation assays (VCA) like Rotational Thromboelastometry (ROTEM) and Thromboelastography (TEG) depict a hypercoagulable state.

Plasma levels of chemokine ligand 20 and chemokine receptor 6 in patients with sepsis: A case control study.

Background: Chemokine ligand 20 (CCL20) is a chemokine released by mainly liver and blood leucocytes. Particularly under pro-inflammatory circumstances it triggers chemotaxis of lymphocytes and dendritic cells via activating receptor chemokine receptor 6 (CCR6) that is specific to it. In experimental sepsis models, the chemokine-receptor pair has been identified as a potential pathophysiological axis affecting mortality.