Use of extracorporeal blood purification therapies in sepsis: the current paradigm, available evidence, and future perspectives.

Background: Sepsis is the result of a dysregulated immune response to infection and is associated with acute organ dysfunction. The syndrome's complexity is contingent upon the underlying pathology and individual patient characteristics, including their immune response. The involvement of multiple organs and physiological functions adds complexity, with "organ cross-talk" emerging as a pivotal pathophysiological and clinical aspect.

Circulating extracellular particles from severe COVID-19 patients show altered profiling and innate lymphoid cell-modulating ability.

Introduction: Extracellular vesicles (EVs) and particles (EPs) represent reliable biomarkers for disease detection. Their role in the inflammatory microenvironment of severe COVID-19 patients is not well determined. Here, we characterized the immunophenotype, the lipidomic cargo and the functional activity of circulating EPs from severe COVID-19 patients (Co-19-EPs) and healthy controls (HC-EPs) correlating the data with the clinical parameters including the partial pressure of oxygen to fraction of inspired oxygen ratio (PaO2/FiO2) and the sequential organ failure assessment (SOFA) score.

Outcomes of COVID-19 Patients with Severe Hypoxemic Acute Respiratory Failure: Non-Invasive Ventilation vs. Straight Intubation-A Propensity Score-Matched Multicenter Cohort Study.

The best timing for endotracheal intubation in patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) hypoxemic acute respiratory failure (hARF) remains debated. Aim of this study is to compare the outcomes of COVID-19 patients with hARF receiving either a trial of non-invasive ventilation (NIV) or intubated with no prior attempt of NIV ("straight intubation"). All consecutive patients admitted to the 25 participating ICUs were included and divided in two groups: the "straight intubation" group and the "NIV" group.

Clinical implications of microvascular CT scan signs in COVID-19 patients requiring invasive mechanical ventilation.

Purpose: COVID-19-related acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is characterized by the presence of signs of microvascular involvement at the CT scan, such as the vascular tree in bud (TIB) and the vascular enlargement pattern (VEP). Recent evidence suggests that TIB could be associated with an increased duration of invasive mechanical ventilation (IMV) and intensive care unit (ICU) stay. The primary objective of this study was to evaluate whether microvascular involvement signs could have a prognostic significance concerning liberation from IMV.

Protective ventilation in patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome related to COVID-19: always, sometimes or never?

Purpose Of Review: To review current evidence on the pathophysiology of COVID-19-related acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and on the implementation of lung protective ventilation.

Recent Findings: Although multiple observations and physiological studies seem to show a different pathophysiological behaviour in COVID-19-ARDS compared with 'classical' ARDS, numerous studies on thousands of patients do not confirm these findings and COVID-19-ARDS indeed shares similar characteristics and interindividual heterogeneity with ARDS from other causes. Although still scarce, present evidence on the application of lung protective ventilation in COVID-19-ARDS shows that it is indeed consistently applied in ICUs worldwide with a possible signal towards better survival at least in one study.

Health-related quality of life profiles, trajectories, persistent symptoms and pulmonary function one year after ICU discharge in invasively ventilated COVID-19 patients, a prospective follow-up study.

Background: Health-related quality of life (HRQoL) impairment is often reported among COVID-19 ICU survivors, and little is known about their long-term outcomes. We evaluated the HRQoL trajectories between 3 months and 1 year after ICU discharge, the factors influencing these trajectories and the presence of clusters of HRQoL profiles in a population of COVID-19 patients who underwent invasive mechanical ventilation (IMV). Moreover, pathophysiological correlations of residual dyspnea were tested.

Synergistic Effect of Static Compliance and D-dimers to Predict Outcome of Patients with COVID-19-ARDS: A Prospective Multicenter Study.

The synergic combination of D-dimer (as proxy of thrombotic/vascular injury) and static compliance (as proxy of parenchymal injury) in predicting mortality in COVID-19-ARDS has not been systematically evaluated. The objective is to determine whether the combination of elevated D-dimer and low static compliance can predict mortality in patients with COVID-19-ARDS. A "training sample" (March-June 2020) and a "testing sample" (September 2020-January 2021) of adult patients invasively ventilated for COVID-19-ARDS were collected in nine hospitals.

Sharing Mechanical Ventilator: In Vitro Evaluation of Circuit Cross-Flows and Patient Interactions.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, a shortage of mechanical ventilators was reported and ventilator sharing between patients was proposed as an ultimate solution. Two lung simulators were ventilated by one anesthesia machine connected through two respiratory circuits and T-pieces. Five different combinations of compliances (30-50 mL × cmHO) and resistances (5-20 cmHO × L × s) were tested.

Compassionate use of anti-IL6 receptor antibodies in critically ill patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome due to SARS-CoV-2.

Background: COVID-19 patients developing the acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) show increased production of pro-inflammatory cytokines, including interleukin-6 (IL-6). The use of humanized monoclonal antibody against interleukin-6 receptor (IL-6R) may represent a potential treatment strategy. We analyzed the effects of compassionate use of tocilizumab and sarilumab on clinical outcome of patients affected by ARDS due COVID-19.

Standardizing PaO2 for PaCO2 in P/F ratio predicts in-hospital mortality in acute respiratory failure due to Covid-19: A pilot prospective study.

Introduction: Up to fifteen percent of patients with novel pandemic coronavirus disease (Covid-19) have acute respiratory failure (ARF). Ratio between arterial partial pressure of oxygen (PaO2) and fraction of inspired oxygen (FiO2), P/F, is currently used as a marker of ARF severity in Covid-19. P/F does not reflect the respiratory efforts made by patients to maintain arterial blood oxygenation, such as tachypnea and hyperpnea, leading to hypocapnia.

Quality of life of COVID-19 critically ill survivors after ICU discharge: 90 days follow-up.

Purpose: The onset of the coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) pandemic in Italy induced a dramatic increase in the need for intensive care unit (ICU) beds for a large proportion of patients affected by COVID-19-related acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). The aim of the present study was to describe the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) at 90 days after ICU discharge in a cohort of COVID-19 patients undergoing invasive mechanical ventilation and to compare it with an age and sex-matched sample from the general Italian and Finnish populations. Moreover, the possible associations between clinical, demographic, social factors, and HRQoL were investigated.

Sustained oxygenation improvement after first prone positioning is associated with liberation from mechanical ventilation and mortality in critically ill COVID-19 patients: a cohort study.

Background: Prone positioning (PP) has been used to improve oxygenation in patients affected by the SARS-CoV-2 disease (COVID-19). Several mechanisms, including lung recruitment and better lung ventilation/perfusion matching, make a relevant rational for using PP. However, not all patients maintain the oxygenation improvement after returning to supine position.

Incidence and Prognosis of Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia in Critically Ill Patients with COVID-19: A Multicenter Study.

The primary objective of this multicenter, observational, retrospective study was to assess the incidence rate of ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients in intensive care units (ICU). The secondary objective was to assess predictors of 30-day case-fatality of VAP. From 15 February to 15 May 2020, 586 COVID-19 patients were admitted to the participating ICU.

Efficacy of corticosteroid treatment for hospitalized patients with severe COVID-19: a multicentre study.

Objective: To assess the efficacy of corticosteroids in patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

Methods: A multicentre observational study was performed from 22 February through 30 June 2020. We included consecutive adult patients with severe COVID-19, defined as respiratory rate ≥30 breath per minute, oxygen saturation ≤93% on ambient air or arterial partial pressure of oxygen to fraction of inspired oxygen ≤300 mm Hg.

Author Correction: Hypothermic Oxygenated New Machine Perfusion System in Liver and Kidney Transplantation of Extended Criteria Donors: First Italian Clinical Trial.

An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via a link at the top of the paper.

Development and validation of a prediction model for severe respiratory failure in hospitalized patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection: a multicentre cohort study (PREDI-CO study).

Objectives: We aimed to develop and validate a risk score to predict severe respiratory failure (SRF) among patients hospitalized with coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19).

Methods: We performed a multicentre cohort study among hospitalized (>24 hours) patients diagnosed with COVID-19 from 22 February to 3 April 2020, at 11 Italian hospitals. Patients were divided into derivation and validation cohorts according to random sorting of hospitals.

Epidemiology of Invasive Pulmonary Aspergillosis Among Intubated Patients With COVID-19: A Prospective Study.

Background: We evaluated the incidence of invasive pulmonary aspergillosis among intubated patients with critical COVID-19 and evaluated different case definitions of invasive aspergillosis.

Methods: Prospective, multicenter study in adult patients with microbiologically confirmed COVID-19 receiving mechanical ventilation. All included participants underwent a screening protocol for invasive pulmonary aspergillosis with bronchoalveolar lavage galactomannan and cultures performed on admission at 7 days and in case of clinical deterioration.

A literature review of 2019 novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV2) infection in neonates and children.

At the time of writing, there are already millions of documented infections worldwide by the novel coronavirus 2019 (2019-nCoV or severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV2)), with hundreds of thousands of deaths. The great majority of fatal events have been recorded in adults older than 70 years; of them, a large proportion had comorbidities. Since data regarding the epidemiologic and clinical characteristics in neonates and children developing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) are scarce and originate mainly from one country (China), we reviewed all the current literature from 1 December 2019 to 7 May 2020 to provide useful information about SARS-CoV2 viral biology, epidemiology, diagnosis, clinical features, treatment, prevention, and hospital organization for clinicians dealing with this selected population.

How important is obesity as a risk factor for respiratory failure, intensive care admission and death in hospitalised COVID-19 patients? Results from a single Italian centre.

Objective: Specific comorbidities and old age create a greater vulnerability to severe Coronavirus Disease 19 (COVID-19). While obesity seems to aggravate the course of disease, the actual impact of the BMI and the cutoff which increases illness severity are still under investigation. The aim of the study was to analyze whether the BMI represented a risk factor for respiratory failure, admission to the intensive care unit (ICU) and death.