Table 2.
Pre-vitamin C protocol patient characteristics according to the study group.
| Variable | Group A (n = 27) | Group B (n = 30) | Group C (n = 35) | Group D (n = 35) | p |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age, years | 77 (70–82) | 77 (66–81) | 78 (68–84) | 79 (64–85) | 0.88 |
| Male sex | 17 (63) | 18 (60) | 20 (57) | 20 (57) | 0.96 |
| Body mass index, kg/m2 | 21.3 (17.9–23.3) | 22.8 (19.6–25.2) | 21.6 (19.6–25.1) | 19.7 (17.5–22.3) | 0.04 |
| Comorbidities | |||||
| Diabetes | 9 (33) | 12 (40) | 11 (31) | 12 (34) | 0.91 |
| Chronic heart failure | 2 (7) | 4 (13) | 5 (14) | 4 (11) | 0.87 |
| Chronic neurologic disease | 9 (33) | 8 (27) | 10 (29) | 11 (31) | 0.95 |
| Chronic lung disease | 7 (26) | 2 (7) | 8 (23) | 3 (9) | 0.09 |
| Liver cirrhosis | 1 (4) | 1 (3) | 5 (14) | 3 (9) | 0.38 |
| Chronic kidney disease | 3 (11) | 6 (20) | 8 (23) | 10 (29) | 0.41 |
| Malignancy | 6 (22) | 6 (20) | 8 (23) | 9 (26) | 0.96 |
| Immunocompromised | 5 (19) | 6 (20) | 7 (20) | 11 (31) | 0.56 |
| Nosocomial infection | 12 (44) | 14 (47) | 11 (31) | 12 (34) | 0.52 |
| Cause of sepsis | |||||
| Pneumonia | 11 (41) | 15 (50) | 13 (37) | 17 (49) | 0.68 |
| Urosepsis | 7 (26) | 8 (27) | 13 (37) | 7 (20) | 0.45 |
| Gastrointestinal/biliary | 7 (26) | 6 (20) | 5 (14) | 6 (17) | 0.69 |
| Skin/soft tissue | 0 | 4 (13) | 1 (3) | 3 (9) | 0.17 |
| Concurrent Bacteremia | 5 (19) | 8 (27) | 14 (40) | 9 (26) | 0.29 |
| ARDS at ICU admission | 2 (7) | 3 (10) | 3 (9) | 2 (6) | 0.97 |
| APACHE II score | 30 (26–35) | 28 (21–34) | 28 (19–33) | 26 (19–32) | 0.45 |
| SOFA score | 11 (10–13) | 13 (11–14) | 12 (11–13) | 12 (10–14) | 0.15 |
| Mechanical ventilation | 21 (78) | 23 (77) | 22 (63) | 21 (60) | 0.30 |
| Neuromuscular blocker | 8 (30) | 11 (37) | 10 (29) | 6 (17) | 0.36 |
| Renal replacement therapy | 7 (26) | 8 (27) | 14 (40) | 12 (34) | 0.58 |
| Vital signs and laboratory data | |||||
| Body temperature, °C | 37.8 (37.4–38.2) | 38.2 (37.8–38.5) | 36.8 (36.4–36.9) | 36.7 (36.5–37.0) | <0.001 |
| Mean arterial pressure, mmHg | 59 (57–66) | 60 (52–64) | 62 (56–68) | 58 (53–64) | 0.35 |
| Respiratory rate, breaths/min | 28 (26–33) | 29 (27–34) | 27 (24–32) | 26 (24–31) | 0.14 |
| PaO2/FiO2 | 232 (152–314) | 158 (99–208) | 260 (162–340) | 250 (120–351) | 0.048 |
| Bicarbonate, mEq/L | 19.5 (17.1–22.4) | 19.2 (16.3–20.7) | 19.0 (14.4–20.9) | 19.5 (17.4–22.8) | 0.75 |
| Creatinine, mg/dL | 1.5 (0.7–1.9) | 1.4 (1.0–1.9) | 1.4 (1.0–2.6) | 1.3 (0.7–2.2) | 0.84 |
| White cell count, 1000/mm3 | 21.9 (19.1–29.8) | 8.1 (3.7–10.9) | 21.9 (16.5–27.7) | 8.1 (3.2–11.6) | <0.001 |
| Total bilirubin, mg/dL | 0.7 (0.4–1.3) | 1.0 (0.6–1.9) | 0.7 (0.5–2.6) | 1.0 (0.6–1.5) | 0.26 |
| C-reactive protein, mg/L | 135 (57–239) | 150 (95–302) | 140 (92–221) | 115 (75–186) | 0.20 |
| Lactate, mmol/L | 3.9 (2.6–7.0) | 4.0 (3.1–6.1) | 4.2 (2.3–6.9) | 3.2 (2.1–7.2) | 0.72 |
| Norepi eq dose, ug/min | 16.0 (10.2–19.1) | 14.9 (10.4–21.1) | 16.0 (9.6–28.3) | 14.8 (6.5–20.7) | 0.70 |
| Vasoactive-inotropic score | 32.0 (21.6–48.1) | 25.9 (17.0–45.6) | 38.0 (18.9–50.6) | 27.0 (13.5–49.3) | 0.71 |
| Echocardiography (n = 17/15/21/15) 1 | |||||
| Ejection fraction, % | 56 (36–64) | 54 (37–63) | 56 (42–60) | 59 (54–64) | 0.40 |
| Septic cardiomyopathy | 7 (41) | 6 (60) | 6 (29) | 3 (20) | 0.52 |
| Time from shock onset to vitamin C protocol, h | 7 (3–12) | 11 (4–20) | 4 (1–8) | 4 (1–8) | 0.03 |
The data are presented as median (interquartile range) or number (percentage). ARDS: Acute respiratory distress syndrome; ICU: Intensive care unit; APACHE: Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation; SOFA: Sequential Organ Failure Assessment; PaO2: Arterial partial pressure of oxygen; FiO2: Fraction of inspired oxygen; Norepi eq: Norepinephrine equivalent. 1 No. of patients was 17 for Group A, 15 for Group B, 21 for Group C, and 15 for Group D.