Background Although COVID-19 has greatly affected many low-income and middle-income countries, detailed information about patients admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) is still scarce. Our aim was to examine ventilation characteristics and outcomes in invasively ventilated patients with COVID-19 in Argentina, an upper middle-income country. Methods In this prospective, multicentre cohort study (SATICOVID), we enrolled patients aged 18 years or older with RT-PCR-confirmed COVID-19 who were on invasive mechanical ventilation and admitted to one of 63 ICUs in Argentina. Patient demographics and clinical, laboratory, and general management variables were collected on day 1 (ICU admission); physiological respiratory and ventilation variables were collected on days 1, 3, and 7. The primary outcome was all-cause in-hospital mortality. All patients were followed until death in hospital or hospital discharge, whichever occurred first. Secondary outcomes were ICU mortality, identification of independent predictors of mortality, duration of invasive mechanical ventilation, and patterns of change in physiological respiratory and mechanical ventilation variables. The study is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov , NCT04611269 , and is complete. Findings Between March 20, 2020, and Oct 31, 2020, we enrolled 1909 invasively ventilated patients with COVID-19, with a median age of 62 years [IQR 52–70]. 1294 (67·8%) were men, hypertension and obesity were the main comorbidities, and 939 (49·2%) patients required vasopressors. Lung-protective ventilation was widely used and median duration of ventilation was 13 days (IQR 7–22). Median tidal volume was 6·1 mL/kg predicted bodyweight (IQR 6·0–7·0) on day 1, and the value increased significantly up to day 7; positive end-expiratory pressure was 10 cm H 2 O (8–12) on day 1, with a slight but significant decrease to day 7. Ratio of partial pressure of arterial oxygen (PaO 2 ) to fractional inspired oxygen (FiO 2 ) was 160 (IQR 111–218), respiratory system compliance 36 mL/cm H 2 O (29–44), driving pressure 12 cm H 2 O (10–14), and FiO 2 0·60 (0·45–0·80) on day 1. Acute respiratory distress syndrome developed in 1672 (87·6%) of patients; 1176 (61·6%) received prone positioning. In-hospital mortality was 57·7% (1101/1909 patients) and ICU mortality was 57·0% (1088/1909 patients); 462 (43·8%) patients died of refractory hypoxaemia, frequently overlapping with septic shock (n=174). Cox regression identified age (hazard ratio 1·02 [95% CI 1·01–1·03]), Charlson score (1·16 [1·11–1·23]), endotracheal intubation outside of the ICU (ie, before ICU admission; 1·37 [1·10–1·71]), vasopressor use on day 1 (1·29 [1·07–1·55]), D-dimer concentration (1·02 [1·01–1·03]), PaO 2 /FiO ...

OBJECTIVES: The multifaceted long-term impairments resulting from critical illness and COVID-19 require interdisciplinary management approaches in the recovery phase of illness. Operational insights into the structure and process of recovery clinics (RCs) from heterogeneous health systems are needed. This study describes the structure and process characteristics of existing and newly implemented ICU-RCs and COVID-RCs in a subset of large health systems in the United States. DESIGN: Cross-sectional survey. SETTING: Thirty-nine RCs, representing a combined 156 hospitals within 29 health systems participated. PATIENTS: None. INTERVENTIONS: None. MEASUREMENT AND MAIN RESULTS: RC demographics, referral criteria, and operating characteristics were collected, including measures used to assess physical, psychologic, and cognitive recoveries. Thirty-nine RC surveys were completed (94% response rate). ICU-RC teams included physicians, pharmacists, social workers, physical therapists, and advanced practice providers. Funding sources for ICU-RCs included clinical billing (n = 20, 77%), volunteer staff support (n = 15, 58%), institutional staff/space support (n = 13, 46%), and grant or foundation funding (n = 3, 12%). Forty-six percent of RCs report patient visit durations of 1 hour or longer. ICU-RC teams reported use of validated scales to assess psychologic recovery (93%), physical recovery (89%), and cognitive recovery (86%) more often in standard visits compared with COVID-RC teams (psychologic, 54%; physical, 69%; and cognitive, 46%). CONCLUSIONS: Operating structures of RCs vary, though almost all describe modest capacity and reliance on volunteerism and discretionary institutional support. ICU- and COVID-RCs in the United States employ varied funding sources and endorse different assessment measures during visits to guide care coordination. Common features include integration of ICU clinicians, interdisciplinary approach, and focus on severe critical illness. The heterogeneity in RC structures and processes contributes to future research on the optimal structure and process to achieve the best postintensive care syndrome and postacute sequelae of COVID outcomes.

Objective:To describe and compare the work of breathing (WOB) during spontaneous breathing under four conditions: (1) breathing through a tracheostomy tube with an inflated cuff, (2) breathing through the upper airway (UA) with a deflated cuff and occluded tube, (3) breathing through the UA with an occluded cuffless tube, and (4) postdecannulation.Patients and Methods:Patients who tolerated an occluded cuffless tube were included. Ventilatory variables and esophageal pressure were recorded. The pressure-time product (PTP), PTP/min, and PTP/min/tidal volume (PTP/min/VT) were measured. Each condition was measured for 5 min with a 15 min time interval between evaluations. Quantitative data are expressed as mean ± standard deviation. Single-factor analysis of variance was used, and the Games-Howell test was used for post hoc analysis of comparisons between group means (P ≤ 0.05).Results:Eight patients were studied under each of the four conditions described above. Statistically significant differences were found for PTP, PTP/min, and PTP/min/VT. In the post hoc analysis for PTP, significant differences among all conditions were found. For PTP/min, there was no significant difference between Conditions 2 and 4 (P = 0.138), and for PTP/min/VT, there was no significant difference between Conditions 1 and 2 (P = 0.072) or between Conditions 2 and 3 (P = 0.106). A trend toward a higher PTP, PTP/min, and PTP/min/VT was observed when breathing through a cuffless tracheostomy tube.Conclusion:The four conditions differed with respect to WOB. Cuff inflation could result in a reduced WOB because there is less dead space. Cuffless tracheostomy tubes generate increased WOB, perhaps due to the material deformity caused by body temperature.

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ObjectivesThe effectiveness of the active humidification systems (AHS) in patients already weaned from mechanical ventilation and with an artificial airway has not been very well described. The objective of this study was to evaluate the performance of an AHS in chronically tracheostomized and spontaneously breathing patients.MethodsMeasurements were quantified at three levels of temperature (T°) of the AHS: level I, low; level II, middle; and level III, high and at different flow levels (20 to 60 L/minute). Statistical analysis of repeated measurements was performed using analysis of variance and significance was set at a P<0.05.ResultsWhile the lowest temperature setting (level I) did not condition gas to the minimum recommended values for any of the flows that were used, the medium temperature setting (level II) only conditioned gas with flows of 20 and 30 L/minute. Finally, at the highest temperature setting (level III), every flow reached the minimum absolute humidity (AH) recommended of 30 mg/L.ConclusionAccording to our results, to obtain appropiate relative humidity, AH and T° of gas one should have a device that maintains water T° at least at 53℃ for flows between 20 and 30 L/m, or at T° of 61℃ at any flow rate.