Background Low muscularity (LM) is associated with high mortality in the Caucasian critically ill population. Muscularity can be accurately measured by the skeletal muscle index (SMI; cm2/m2) generated by computed tomography (CT). This study aimed to establish the overall and sex‐specific cutoff values that predict hospital mortality in an Asian critically ill population. Methods This single‐center, retrospective, observational study included patients aged ≥18 years with an abdominal CT conducted within 72 hours of admission to the intensive care unit. SMI generated from CT images at the level of the mid‐third lumbar vertebra were extracted from the medical records. Area under the receiver operating characteristic curves (AUC) was generated to determine the SMI cutoff values for hospital mortality. Association between LM (defined by SMI cutoff value) and hospital mortality was further evaluated by multivariable logistic regression. Results In a sample of 228 patients, the overall SMI cutoff value (cm2/m2) for hospital mortality was 42.0 (AUC: 0.637; sensitivity: 66.7%, specificity: 56.8%), whereas it was 46.5 in males and 35.3 in females. More males than females had LM (51.4% vs 37.5%), and >40% of overweight/obese patients had LM. Patients with LM were older and had a longer duration of mechanical ventilation and hospitalization. After adjusting for known confounders, LM independently predicted hospital mortality in the overall sample (adjusted odds ratio: 2.42; 95% CI 1.16–5.03; P = 0.003) and in both sexes. Conclusion This study established a set of SMI cutoff values that predict hospital mortality. LM is independently associated with hospital mortality.

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Background Sodium–glucose cotransporter 2 inhibitors are among the new-generation oral antihyperglycemic agents that have been used in the treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus. With the recent coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic and rise of cases in the third wave, diagnosis of life-threatening euglycemic diabetic ketoacidosis may easily be overlooked or missed. Case presentation We present the case of a 37-year-old Malay gentleman with underlying type 2 diabetes mellitus on empagliflozin, who presented to our hospital with symptomatic coronavirus disease 2019 infection and diabetic ketoacidosis. He developed severe rebound euglycemic diabetic ketoacidosis due to the continuous usage of empagliflozin for glycemic control alongside intravenous insulin. Conclusions Physicians should have a high index of suspicion in diagnosing and managing euglycemic diabetic ketoacidosis, including withholding treatment of sodium–glucose cotransporter 2 inhibitors during the acute management of diabetic ketoacidosis.