Table 1.
Clinical patient characteristics upon activation of the sepsis code with respect to the total infected patient population and subsequent 28-day mortality
| Patient population (N = 130) | Survivors (N = 102) | Non-survivors (N = 28) | p-value | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age (years) (mean, S.D.) | 63.1 (15.2) | 62.3 (15.2) | 66.1 (15.0) | 0.205 |
| Male gender (N, %) | 83 (63.8%) | 61 (59.8%) | 22 (78.6%) | 0.348 |
| Infection characterisation | ||||
| Infection no SIRS (N, %) | 7 (5.4%) | 6 (5.9%) | 1 (3.6%) | 0.623 |
| Severe sepsis (N, %) | 41 (31.8%) | 37 (36.3%) | 4 (14.3%) | 0.028 |
| Septic shock (N, %) | 82 (63.1%) | 59 (57.8%) | 23 (82.1%) | 0.031 |
| Sepsis-2 (N, %) | 122 (93.8%) | 95 (93.1%) | 27 (96.4%) | 0.814 |
| Sepsis-3 (N, %) | 116 (89.2%) | 88 (86.3%) | 28 (100.0%) | 0.157 |
| Location of sepsis code activation | ||||
| Emergency department (N, %) | 39 (30.0%) | 33 (32.4%) | 6 (21.4%) | 0.568 |
| Ward (N, %) | 63 (48.5%) | 47 (46.1%) | 16 (57.1%) | 0.729 |
| ICU (N, %) | 28 (21.5%) | 22 (21.6%) | 6 (21.4) | 0.839 |
| Surgical admissions (N, %) | 47 (36.2%) | 37 (36.3%) | 10 (35.7%) | 0.487 |
| Medical admissions (N, %) | 83 (63.8%) | 65 (63.7%) | 18 (64.3%) | 0.487 |
| ICU length of stay (days) (median, IQR) | 6 [2–15] | 5 [2–11] | 12 [3–24] | 0.093 |
| Hospital length of stay (days) (median, IQR) | 16.5 [8–31] | 17 [8–33] | 16 [5.5–27] | 0.298 |
| Life supporting and intensive care therapies | ||||
| Vasopressors (N, %) | 67 (51.5%) | 52 (40.0%) | 15 (53.6%) | 0.106 |
| Renal replacement therapy (N, %) | 15 (11.5%) | 8 (6.2%) | 7 (25.0%) | 0.009 |
| Mechanical ventilation (N, %) | 44 (33.8%) | 30 (23.1%) | 14 (50.0%) | 0.011 |
| Mechanical ventilation duration (days) | 7 [3–16.25] | 5 [3–17.5] | 10 [4.5–14.75] | 0.081 |
| High-flow nasal cannula use (N, %) | 19 (14.6%) | 16 (15.7%) | 3 (10.7%) | 0.386 |
| Pre-existing comorbidities | ||||
| Cardiopathy (N, %) | 24 (18.5%) | 16 (15.7%) | 8 (28.6%) | 0.120 |
| Chronic kidney disease (N, %) | 19 (14.6%) | 14 (13.7%) | 5 (17.6%) | 0.584 |
| COPD (N, %) | 19 (14.6%) | 10 (9.8%) | 9 (32.1%) | 0.003 |
| Immunosuppression (N, %) | 63 (48.5%) | 44 (43.1%) | 19 (67.9%) | 0.020 |
| Liver cirrhosis (N, %) | 3 (2.3%) | 1 (1.0%) | 2 (7.1%) | 0.054 |
| Microbiology | ||||
| Positive blood culture (N, %) | 54 (41.5%) | 40 (39.2%) | 14 (50.0%) | 0.238 |
| Gram positive (N, %) | 34 (26.2%) | 24 (23.5%) | 10 (35.7%) | 0.895 |
| Gram negative (N, %) | 17 (13.1%) | 13 (12.7%) | 4 (14.3%) | 0.797 |
| Fungal (N, %) | 2 (1.5%) | 1 (1.0%) | 2 (7.1%) | 0.529 |
| Origin of infection | ||||
| Abdominal (N, %) | 41 (31.5%) | 35 (34.3%) | 6 (21.4%) | 0.194 |
| Bacteria—primary (N, %) | 4 (3.1%) | 3 (2.9%) | 1 (3.6%) | 0.864 |
| Catheter-related (N, %) | 8 (6.2%) | 5 (4.9%) | 3 (10.7%) | 0.257 |
| Central nervous system (N, %) | 2 (1.5%) | 1 (1.0%) | 1 (3.6%) | 0.324 |
| Respiratory (N, %) | 34 (26.2%) | 25 (24.5%) | 9 (32.1%) | 0.416 |
| Soft-tissue (N, %) | 4 (3.1%) | 4 (3.9%) | 0 (0.0%) | 0.287 |
| Urinary (N, %) | 30 (23.1%) | 25 (24.5%) | 5 (17.9%) | 0.459 |
| Unknown (N, %) | 3 (2.3%) | 1 (1.0%) | 2 (7.1%) | 0.054 |
| Other (N, %) | 4 (3.1%) | 3 (2.9%) | 1 (3.6%) | 0.864 |
| Source control | ||||
| Focus cleaning (N, %) | 34 (26.2%) | 28 (27.5%) | 6 (21.4%) | 0.521 |
| Drainage (N, %) | 8 (6.2%) | 6 (5.9%) | 2 (7.1%) | 0.806 |
| Surgery (N, %) | 23 (17.7%) | 20 (19.6%) | 3 (10.7%) | 0.275 |
| Biomarker and severity scores | ||||
| MR-proADM (nmol/L) (median, IQR) | 3.54 [1.89–6.69] | 3.18 [1.73–5.64] | 5.69 [3.98–13.43] | < 0.001 |
| PCT (ng/mL) (median, IQR) | 7.05 [1.46–28.8] | 7.85 [1.61–29.13] | 4.94 [1.25–29.86] | 0.654 |
| Lactate (mmol/L) (median, IQR) | 2.65 [1.70–4.57] | 2.50 [1.60–3.75] | 4.1 [2.0–8.10] | 0.005 |
| CRP (mg/L) (median, IQR) | 17.78 [11.03–27.88] | 17.48 [10.83–27.60] | 23.14 [12.86–30.80] | 0.322 |
| SOFA (points) (mean, S.D.) | 6.39 (3.46) | 5.74 (3.11) | 8.65 (3.70) | < 0.001 |
| APACHE II (points) (mean, S.D.) | 21.98 (7.22) | 21.63 (7.58) | 23.13 (6.02) | 0.783 |
Data are presented as absolute numbers with percentages in brackets, indicating the proportion of surviving and non-surviving patients at 28 days. APACHE II Acute Physiological and Chronic Health Evaluation II score, COPD chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, CRP C-reactive protein, ICU intensive care unit, IQR interquartile range, MR-proADM mid-regional proadrenomedullin, N number, PCT procalcitonin, SOFA Sequential Organ Failure Assessment score