Table 1.
Demographics
| Awake volunteers | Comatose patients | pa | |
|---|---|---|---|
| N = 15 | N = 15 | ||
| Sex | |||
| Female | 7 (46.7%) | 7 (46.7%) | > 0.99 |
| Male | 8 (53.3%) | 8 (53.3%) | |
| Age mean (IQR) | 54.7 (49–64) | 59.2 (50–71.5) | 0.429 |
| Length of ICU stay, days, median (IQR) | NA | 6 (2–8) | NA |
| GCS, median (range) | NA | 3 (3–7) | NA |
| FOUR, median score (range) | NA | 3 (0–9) | NA |
| Time from assessment to death, days, median (IQR) | NA | 1 (0–2.6) | NA |
| Levels of sedationb | NA | NA | |
| - None | 9 | ||
| - Low/moderate | 5 | ||
| - High | 1 |
Abbreviations: IQR interquartile range, GCS Glasgow Coma Scale, FOUR Full Outline of UnResponsiveness
at-test was used for comparisons of means, and Pearson’s X2 test was used for comparisons of categorical values
b “None” (no sedation given during or before the examination); “low to moderate” indicating remifentanil < 15 µg/kg/h, propofol < 2 mg/kg/h, fentanyl < 5 µg/kg/h, sevoflurane < 3%, and midazolam < 0.15 mg/kg/h; “high to very high” indicating remifentanil > 15 µg/kg/h, propofol > 2 mg/kg/h, fentanyl > 5 µg/kg/h, sevoflurane > 3%, and midazolam > 0.15 mg/kg/h[4]