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PLOS One logoLink to PLOS One
. 2022 Jul 21;17(7):e0271682. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0271682

Hyperlactatemia associated with elective tumor craniotomy: Protocol for an observational study of pathophysiology and clinical implications

Alexandra Vassilieva 1,*,#, Kirsten Møller 1,2,#, Jane Skjøth-Rasmussen 3, Martin Kryspin Sørensen 1,#
Editor: Alfio Spina4
PMCID: PMC9302830  PMID: 35862410

Abstract

Hyperlactatemia occurs frequently after brain tumor surgery. Existing studies are scarce and predominantly retrospective, reporting inconsistent associations to new neurological deficits and prolonged hospital stay. Here we describe a protocol for a prospective observational study of hyperlactatemia during and after elective tumor craniotomy and the association with postoperative outcome, as well as selected pathophysiological aspects, and possible risk factors. We will include 450 brain tumor patients scheduled for elective craniotomy. Arterial blood samples for lactate and glucose measurement will be withdrawn hourly during surgery and until six hours postoperatively. To further explore the association of hyperlactatemia with perioperative insulin resistance, additional blood sampling measuring markers of insulin resistance will be done in 100 patients. Furthermore, in a subgroup of 20 patients, blood from a jugular bulb catheter will be drawn simultaneously with blood from the radial artery to measure the arterial to jugular venous concentration difference of lactate, in order to study the direction of cerebrovascular lactate flux. Functional clinical outcome will be determined by the modified Rankin Scale, length of stay and mortality at 30 days, 6 months, 1 year and 5 years. Clinical outcome will be compared between patients with and without hyperlactatemia. Multivariate logistic regression will be used to identify risk factors for hyperlactatemia. A statistical analysis plan will be publicized to support transparency and reproducibility. Results will be published in a peer-reviewed journal and presented at international conferences.

Introduction

Hyperlactatemia in brain tumor surgery: Clinical implications

Lactate metabolism in the human body is a complex, dynamic and incompletely understood process [1, 2]. In brain tumor surgery, hyperlactatemia occurs commonly with studies reporting prevalences of 32–68% [38]. Yet, it is unclear whether hyperlactatemia is an independent risk factor for patients undergoing tumor craniotomy. In an older randomized trial in patients with severe burns, a reduction in type 1 lactic acidosis with dichloroacetate neither worsened nor improved hemodynamics or survival [9], suggesting that lactate is not toxic in itself, but rather a marker of disturbed homeostasis. However, it has also been suggested that lactate in patients with intracranial tumors may act as a substrate for tumor cells and promote tumor growth, and that hyperlactatemia thus constitutes an independent risk factor for cancer patients [10, 11]. Existing studies of hyperlactatemia in neurosurgery have not reached a consensus on whether lactate accumulation is related to clinical outcome. Thus, some have reported an association with longer hospital stay [58], a single study found a correlation with new neurological deficits [6], while others found no association with outcome [3, 4]. Available studies in this field are predominantly retrospective [37] with only one existing prospective study, which was terminated early based on an interim analysis indicating futility [8].

Hyperlactatemia in brain tumor surgery: Pathophysiological implications

The cause of hyperlactatemia in brain tumor surgery is debated. Both tumor characteristics [10, 1214], comorbidity [15], perioperative rhabdomyolysis [16], length of surgery [7], and type of anesthesia [17] have been suggested to play a part.

Lactate is well-known as a marker of global or regional ischemia, but as an additional consideration hyperlactatemia is also a marker of increased non-oxidative glycolysis and may be induced by hyperglycemia in healthy subjects [18]. Insulin resistance is a common side effect of glucocorticoid treatment and can also be induced in healthy subjects after short-term treatment [19]. As the majority of patients undergoing tumor craniotomy are treated with glucocorticoids either preoperatively (especially prednisolone to reduce edema and thus intracranial pressure), intraoperatively (especially dexamethasone, to reduce the perioperative stress response) or both, glucocorticoid-associated insulin resistance is an attractive explanation of hyperlactatemia after tumor craniotomy.

Lactate has previously been shown to act as a substrate for the brain in conditions with hyperlactatemia such as physical activity or lactate infusion [20]. It is therefore likely that perioperative hyperlactatemia associated with tumor craniotomy is also associated with increased cerebral lactate metabolism and, therefore, a net cerebrovascular lactate influx (i.e., a positive arterial to jugular venous concentration difference). This has never been addressed and would contrast with the usual finding of a slight net cerebrovascular lactate outflux from the brain to the bloodstream (i.e., a negative arterial to jugular venous concentration difference) at normal serum lactate.

The present research protocol describes a prospective study consisting of four sub-studies to further explore hyperlactatemia in tumor craniotomy patients. We intend to investigate whether hyperlactatemia is related to clinical outcome (sub-study I) and identify possible risk factors associated with hyperlactatemia (sub-study II). In subsets of patients, we aim to study whether hyperlactatemia in this context is associated with pre- and postoperative insulin resistance (sub-study III) as well as a net cerebrovascular influx of lactate (sub-study IV). We hypothesize that tumor size, preoperative glucocorticoid dose and the severity of hyperlactatemia is associated to functional clinical outcome, with preoperative glucocorticoid dose as the independent risk factor. Furthermore, we expect the severity of insulin resistance and hyperglycemia to be associated with the severity of hyperlactatemia, and that hyperlactatemia is associated with a net cerebrovascular influx of lactate.

Methods and analysis

Study design

This single-center, prospective observational cohort study will be conducted at the Department of Neurosurgery and Neuroanaesthesiology, Rigshospitalet, Copenhagen, Denmark.

Study population

The Department of Neurosurgery and Neuroanaesthesiology, Rigshospitalet, performs an average of 20 elective craniotomies per week, most of these procedures are carried out on patients with a brain tumor. This study will include 450 elective tumor craniotomy patients.

Inclusion criteria

Patients who meet the following criteria will be included in the study: (1) patients with a full mental capacity who are ≥ 18 years old and scheduled for elective brain tumor craniotomy; (2) patients understanding written and spoken Danish.

Exclusion criteria

Patients who meet any of the following criteria will be excluded from the study: (1) scheduled for stereotactic biopsy; (2) scheduled for pituitary surgery; (3) lack of ability to provide written informed consent; (4) previously enrolled and scheduled for reoperation.

Consent to participate

Patients selected and booked for elective tumor craniotomy will be approached during their preoperative visit and assessed for study eligibility. Potential participants will be provided with verbal and written information by the investigator and given an opportunity to ask questions about the in a private atmosphere with the ability to have a bystander. Potential candidates are allowed time to consider their willingness to participate. All participation is voluntary and requires written consent that can be withdrawn at any time.

Risks, side effects and disadvantages for study participants

All participants will receive standard clinical treatment, supplemented by additional blood sampling from pre-existing intravascular catheters and two standardized neurological disability assessments using modified Rankin Scale (mRS). In a subgroup of 20 patients, jugular bulb catheterization will be performed after induction of general anesthesia. This ultrasound-guided procedure is associated with a minor risk of bleeding but is otherwise risk-free [21]. There is no increased risk of infection during blood sampling, as blood is drawn under aseptic conditions. Participants are covered by the insurance of Rigshospitalet and the Danish Patient Compensation Association.

Sample size calculation

The sample size calculation is based on the study by Brallier et al (6). This study observed an incidence of new neurological deficits in 15% of craniotomy patients with S-lactate > 2.2 mmol/L, compared with 7% in craniotomy patients with S-lactate ≤ 2.2 mmol/L. A standardized difference of 0.26 was calculated. Assuming a power of 0.8 and a level of significance of 0.05 and using a graphical approximation [22] a sample size of 450 patients for the primary endpoint was reached.

Data collection specifications

This study will acquire data from the patient medical charts, perioperative monitoring, blood analyses, two neurological disability assessments and the Danish Cause of Death Register (Fig 1).

Fig 1. Timeline for patient inclusion and data collection.

Fig 1

Patients are assessed for study eligibility during their preoperative visit. Preoperative mRS is assessed upon study inclusion. Hourly blood gas test from arterial cannula (N = 450) and jugular vein (N = 20) throughout surgery, starting at skin incision, and continuing for 6 postoperative hours in the Post Anesthesia Recovery Unit. Additional analyses of insulin resistance measured perioperatively and before food intake, the day after surgery, in a subgroup of patients (N = 100). Continuous data collection from perioperative monitoring and patient journal until discharge from hospital. Follow-up mRS assessment 30 days after surgery. Mortality data are obtained from the Danish Cause of Death Register after 30 days, 6 months, 1 year and 5 years.

Preoperative data collection

The following demographic information is retrieved from patient file: age, sex, BMI, preoperative neurologic disability assessed by mRS, comorbidity, tumor characteristics (including tumor location and volume from preoperative MRI), medication (including any glucocorticoid expressed as cortisol equivalents) and biochemistry.

Intraoperative data collection

Data collection from patient monitors (invasive and non-invasive blood pressure, saturation, heartrate, and ECG), medication, transfusions and events or complications during anesthesia / surgery.

Blood is drawn from arterial cannula (the cannula is inserted into the radial artery by an anesthesiologist shortly after induction of anesthesia, as part of the standardized perioperative monitoring) and subjected to analysis as follows:

  • For all sub-studies, S-lactate, P-glucose, SaO2 and PaO2, using a point-of-care ABL800 FLEX blood gas analyzer (Radiometer) hourly from the time of skin incision to the end of surgery. (N = 450 patients)

  • For sub-study III and IV, HbA1c, insulin, C-peptide, glucagon, and IL-6 immediately after induction and before treatment with intraoperative glucocorticoids. (N = 100 patients)

  • For sub-study IV, ultrasound-guided retrograde catheterization (1-lumen, 16 G, 16 cm, Teleflex/Arrow) of the internal jugular vein is inserted shortly after induction of general anesthesia. Analysis of arterial and jugular bulb levels of S-lactate, P-glucose and PO2 are performed hourly as described above (N = 20 patients).

Data collection in Post Anesthesia Recovery Unit

Blood is drawn from arterial cannula immediately upon arrival to the Post Anesthesia Recovery Unit (before food intake) to analyze P-insulin, C-peptide, glucagon, and IL-6, after which patients are allowed food intake until 2 am (N = 100 patients). Hourly analysis of S-lactate, P-glucose, SO2 and PO2 is measured in blood from the arterial (N = 450 patients) and jugular bulb catheter (N = 20 patients). The arterial cannula and jugular bulb catheter are removed before discharge to the neurosurgical ward, typically after 6 hours observation. The presence and degree of nausea / vomiting as well as pain, assessed by numeric or visual rating scale 0–10, are noted in the patient file at every hour. Time to mobilization in the Post Anesthesia Recovery Unit is noted as well.

Data collection during follow-up

The morning after surgery, at 7.30 am (after fasting from 2.00 am) blood is drawn from a peripheral or central vein to analyze fasting P-glucose, P-insulin, C-peptide, glucagon, and IL-6 (N = 100 patients). Tumor type is classified by histopathological analysis of the intraoperative biopsy (classification level: glioma vs meningioma vs metastasis vs neurinoma vs cavernoma vs other). The discharge day and time is automatically recorded in the medical chart. The investigator estimates neurological disability using mRS at follow-up assessment or over telephone 30 days after surgery. Mortality after 30 days, 6 months, 1 and 5 years is obtained from the Danish Cause of Death Register.

Data management

Patient information is collected and stored by the investigators in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation with consent and supervision from the Danish Data Protection Agency.

Data are kept confidential in Research Electronic Data Capture, a password-protected software that stores data in case report forms with restricted and secured access. Case report forms are only accessible to investigators and coinvestigators. Exported files are stored on an encrypted personal computer with limited access.

Definitions and calculations

Hyperlactatemia is defined as the measurement of at least one value of S-lactate > 2.2 mmol / L during the observation period starting at surgical incision and ending after 6-hours of observation in the Post Anesthesia Recovery Unit.

Peak lactate is defined as the highest value of S-lactate measured during the observation period.

Mean S-lactate is calculated as the area under the curve for S-lactate over time during the observation period, divided by the duration in hours. This is calculated to estimate the “total” lactate load regardless of whether the triggers occur pre-, intra- or postoperatively.

Intra- / postoperative lactate excess is calculated as mean S-lactate minus S-lactate at surgical incision. This is calculated to estimate the "pure" perioperative contribution to the lactate load.

Arterio-venous concentration difference (a-jD) for lactate, glucose, and oxygen: the concentration in jugular bulb blood minus the concentration in arterial blood.

Study endpoints

Primary endpoints

Sub-study I: Change in mRS from preoperative assessment to 30 days after surgery, in patients with and without hyperlactatemia.

Sub-study II: Prevalence of hyperlactatemia (defined as at least one measurement of S-lactate> 2.2 mmol / L).

Sub-study III: Association between preoperative and/or intraoperative glucocorticoid treatment, HbA1c and pre-/ postoperative insulin resistance (measured by HOMA-IR), adjusted for hours after surgery.

Sub-study IV: Perioperative change in a-jD (lactate) corrected for change in a-jD (O2) from first to last measurement.

Secondary endpoints

Sub-study I:

  • Length of hospital stay, from day of surgery to discharge, in days.

  • Mortality at 30 days, 6 months, 1 year and 5 years (6 months, 1 year and 5 years mortality will not be included in the initial data analysis and publication).

Sub-study II:

  • Association between pre- / intraoperative risk factors (specified in exploratory endpoints) and hyperlactatemia.

Exploratory endpoints

  • Tumor type, location and estimated volume on preoperative MRI scan.

  • BMI and comorbidity (Charlson Comorbidity Index), with focus on insulin dependent or non-dependent diabetes mellitus type 1 or 2 and liver / kidney disease.

  • Neurological deficits at admission and at discharge. The deficits are assessed by the admitting and discharging clinician through standard neurological examination (mental status, cranial nerves, motor system, reflexes, sensation, and cerebellar function).

  • Preoperative chemotherapy, radiation, or immunotherapy.

  • Dose and duration of pre-, intra-, and post-operative treatment with glucocorticoids (expressed as cortisol equivalents in mg).

  • Surgery duration (minutes) and surgery events (such as other procedures during the surgery and complications, using Landriel Ibañez classification).

  • Position during surgery

  • Complete or incomplete total resection of tumor, as indicated by the neurosurgeon in the operative report.

  • Type of anesthesia: total intravenous anesthesia, inhalation anesthesia, awake craniotomy.

  • Intra- and post-operative hypotension (defined as MAP < 60 for > 15 min or MAP < 30% of preoperative resting MAP for > 15 min) and treatment with vasopressors (ephedrine, noradrenaline, methoxyarene) in mg for total surgery duration.

  • Perioperative fluid therapy volume and type, as well as total urine output in mL / hour during surgery and in the Post Anesthesia Recovery Unit.

  • Estimated blood loss and blood transfusion volume.

  • Perioperative blood gas parameters: pH, glucose, PaO2, PaCO2, Base Excess, Hb, HCO3, Na, K, Cl.

  • Postoperative nausea, vomiting and pain. Pain assessed by numeric or visual rating scale 0–10.

  • Mobilization time to upright sitting position in the Post Anesthesia Recovery Unit, measured in hours.

Statistical analysis

Parametric statistics will be used, if data cannot be assumed to follow a normal distribution. P <0.05 is considered statistically significant. Patient characteristics and continuous variables are presented as median values (interquartile range). In the outcome analysis, lactate is analyzed both as continuous (S-lactate area under the curve, total and intraoperative lactate load) and binary variable (S-lactate above and below 2.2 mmol / L).

Linear and multivariate logistic regression will be used for continuous and binary variables respectively. RStudio or comparable professional statistical program will be used. The statistical analysis plan will be made publicly available.

Ethics approval and dissemination of results

The study adheres to Good Clinical Practice guidelines. The protocol has been approved by the Committee on Health Research Ethics of the Capital Region of Denmark (approval date: 21.07.2020, identifier: H-20011650) and by the Danish Data Protection Agency (approval date: 18.05.2020, identifier: P-2020-566). The study is registered on clinicaltrials.gov (identifier: NCT04410315). Amendments to the protocol will be communicated to the relevant authorities.

The results of the study (positive, negative, or inconclusive) will be published in a peer reviewed journal. The results will also be presented in relevant conferences. Reporting will be guided by “Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology Statement”.

Trial status

The study has been recruiting patients since the 1st of August 2020. We estimate a trial recruitment period of 18–20 months.

Bias and confounders

Selection bias is almost always present in studies with voluntary participation. Factors such as socioeconomic status, psychological resilience, severity of illness and number of comorbidities may influence the patient’s readiness to participate. The published data will therefore include the number of non-participants.

Furthermore, patients are included consecutively, in the order in which the studies are mentioned.

Since investigators are susceptible to observational bias, a flowchart and standardized questioning will be used for mRS assessment.

We expect minimal loss to follow-up regarding mortality, as this information will be accessed through the Danish Cause of Death Register. Because many patients may die during the follow-up, survivorship bias is an important type of bias and will be corrected for as appropriate.

The measurement error of S-lactate is expected to be minimal, since all blood samples are analyzed with the same type of equipment.

Major factors influencing lactate production and metabolism are investigated in the study as exploratory endpoints. Continuous variables, such as vital data, are measured on the same type of monitor for all patients. To avoid misclassification, tumors will be classified using the 10th version of International Classification of Disease and the World Health Organization’s classification of tumors, based on the histopathological conclusion from the intraoperative biopsy. The standardized case report form will be publicized as a supplement to study results. Missing data and number of patients lost to follow-up will be reported for each group (normolactatemia and hyperlactatemia) to address any distortion of study results.

We will avoid publication bias by attempting to publish the study irrespective of its conclusions.

Discussion

Even though hyperlactatemia is common in tumor craniotomy patients, little is known of the underlying pathophysiology and the clinical effect of this phenomenon. The results of this study will provide new knowledge about the incidence and possible risk factors for hyperlactatemia in patients undergoing tumor craniotomy, as well as the potential association with functional outcome. It will also explore the role of the surgical stress response and glucocorticoid-associated insulin resistance for the development of hyperlactatemia and provide an indication of the pathophysiological significance for the brain by measuring the net cerebrovascular flux of lactate.

Previous studies on this subject [37] have been retrospective and may therefore have been susceptible to selection bias. With a prospective study we hope to avoid such bias by sampling data according to a prespecified protocol. There are, however, possible contributing factors to hyperlactatemia that we have not accounted for in our design. Thus, perioperative rhabdomyolysis may increase S-lactate [23]. In neurosurgery, rhabdomyolysis has been reported amongst patients who are placed in the lateral position, and for those who undergo surgery lasting more than 5 hours [16]. Myoglobin, creatine kinase, lactate dehydrogenase and creatinine are measured in our department only if there is clinical suspicion of rhabdomyolysis or kidney failure. We would most likely detect severe rhabdomyolysis, as we routinely monitor patient mobility, urine output and electrolyte levels. As part of our study design, we record perioperative positioning, duration of surgery, and BMI as possible contributing risk factors for hyperlactatemia.

Additionally, the type and volume of intravenous fluid administration may decrease or increase lactate levels by dilution or exogenous contribution, respectively. The intravenous fluid of choice in our department is isotonic saline; selected patients may receive hypertonic saline or Ringer lactate on specific indications. We do not use mannitol. Intravenous fluid type and volume in each perioperative phase will be reported in the final manuscript.

Another limitation of our study is the time period for lactate measurements. Due to the organization of perioperative care, we cannot measure S-lactate for longer that 6 hours postoperatively and therefore cannot differentiate between patients with late, prolonged, or short-lived hyperlactatemia.

An observational study design makes it possible to address multiple possible risk factors at once, which is a necessary approach when investigating a multifactorial phenomenon [24], such as hyperlactatemia. Many risk factors, however, may interact with each other. An example of this is the interaction between tumor volume and glucocorticoid dose. Tumor cells produce lactate, a process known as the Warburg effect [25]. A large tumor load may therefore contribute to elevated lactate levels [26]. Furthermore, voluminous and infiltrating brain tumors bring about peritumoral edema with increased intracranial pressure, a condition that is typically remedied with high-dose glucocorticoids, a drug class which may raise lactate through insulin resistance with hyperglycemia [27]. Tumor volume and glucocorticoids are thus interacting risk factors that contribute to lactate production through different mechanisms.

Moreover, lactate production by the tumor itself may be notably higher in patients with brain metastasis and extracranial primary tumors. We expect that these patients will exhibit higher initial lactate levels, but an unchanged "pure" perioperative contribution to the lactate load (see “Definitions and calculations”). Conversely, we expect that initial lactate levels are lower in patients who have received preoperative chemotherapy, radiation or immunotherapy, due to a reduction in tumor burden.

Brain tumors are very diverse, but it is unknown whether the lactate profile and time course differs by tumor type. We have chosen to include patients with meningiomas in our study, as they are classified as brain tumors by the American Association of Neurological Surgeons, and because previous studies have reported on the occurrence of hyperlactatemia even in patients with this tumor type. In the future, it also will be interesting to assess the effect of craniotomy on hyperlactatemia in patients with other surgical (e.g. neurovascular) indications.

While observational studies may be helpful at recognizing associations between variables, they are not designed to study causality. This study may thus help uncover associations between hyperlactatemia and potential risk factors, which subsequently will need further scrutiny to suggest potential causality. We therefore hypothesize that glucocorticoid-induced insulin resistance is a major risk factor of hyperlactatemia, i.e. that there is an association between glucocorticoid doses, markers of insulin resistance, and arterial lactate levels. If this hypothesis appears to be corroborated and if hyperlactatemia appears to be an independent risk factor of functional outcome, a randomized trial of two different doses of perioperative glucocorticoid may be planned.

Supporting information

S1 File. Strobe checklist.

Strobe checklist for “Hyperlactatemia associated with elective tumor craniotomy: protocol for an observational study of pathophysiology and clinical implications”.

(DOC)

Acknowledgments

We thank Niels Risør Hammer (Department of Neuroanaesthesiology, Rigshospitalet) and Morten Ziebell (Department of Neurosurgery, Rigshospitalet) for supporting this research project with department resources. We also wish to thank Signe Tellerup Nielsen (Department of Anaesthesia, Bispebjerg Hospital) and Rikke Krogh-Madsen (Center for Physical Activity Research, Rigshospitalet) for insightful discussions concerning insulin resistance in planning of sub-study III.

Data Availability

No datasets were generated or analysed during the current study. All relevant data from this study will be made available upon study completion. Upon study completion, in compliance with Danish law and the Global Data Protection Regulation of the European Union, the collected data will not be made publicly available, but may be made available to interested parties upon reasonable request and preparation of a Data Sharing Agreement.

Funding Statement

Alexandra Vassilieva has received funding from the following private foundation: 70.000 DDK from “Oberstinde Kirsten Jensa la Cours legat”, 75.000 DDK from ”Jens og Maren Thestrups Legat til kræftforskning” of and 25.000 DDk from “Agnethe Løvgreens Fond”. None of these foundations provided a grant number or played a role in study design, preparation of protocol, data collection and analysis or decision to publish. The Department of Neuroanaesthesiology at Rigshospitalet, Denmark has received payment for performing quality control studies for Radiometer. Radiometer has had no influence on the use of this money and has not initiated or contributed to the design of this protocol. URL of each funder website: Oberstinde Kirsten Jensa la Cours legat: http://www.dasaim.dk/forskning/ansogninger-til-dasaims-fond-og-oberstinde-jensa-la-cours-legat/ Jens og Maren Thestrups Legat til kræftforskning: https://www.legatbogen.dk/jens-og-maren-thestrups-legat-til-krftforskning/stoetteomraade/6307 Agnethe Løvgreens Fond https://www.kvindeligelaeger.dk/om-legatet This does not alter our adherence to PLOS ONE policies on sharing data and materials.

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Decision Letter 0

Alfio Spina

10 Mar 2022

PONE-D-21-37350Hyperlactatemia associated with elective tumor craniotomy: protocol for an observational study of pathophysiology and clinical implications.PLOS ONE

Dear Dr. Vassilieva,

Thank you for submitting your manuscript to PLOS ONE. After careful consideration, we feel that it has merit but does not fully meet PLOS ONE’s publication criteria as it currently stands. Therefore, we invite you to submit a revised version of the manuscript that addresses the points raised during the review process.

==============================

ACADEMIC EDITOR: Reviewers found potential in your manuscript, however it needs an extensione revision before considering accpentace. Please follow the attached comments.

==============================

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Reviewers' comments:

Reviewer #1: Thank you for submitting the study protocol.

This is a quite an endeavour to be undertaken.

1. What is the expected time frame for completion? With these difficult covid times, still possible to undertake such volume load?

2. How does lactate relate to rhabdomyolysis?

3. Would patient positioning affect lactate level as well? Patient mobility pre and post op?

4. A patient with know primary cancer would still be included in the study? Their preop lactate level may be more elevated compared to the standard?

5. Does the lactate level correlate with the preoperative dose and time duration of dexamethasone treatment?

6. Whether or not the patient underwent previous chemotherapy treatment or immunotherapy treatment affect lactate levels?

7. Why are samples collected until 6 hrs post op? why not till they ambulate or 12 hrs?

8. Does the type of IV fluid given pre, intra and post op vary? Normal saline vs ½ NS vs Ringer lactate?

9. Are patients given any 20% mannitol pre or intra or post op?

10. How about hypertonic saline solution?

11. What is the expected loss of follow up rate? Especially if a patient is diagnosed with a glioblastoma, survival till 5 year is rare.

12. Are patient not allowed to eat until the next morning to asses their fasting glucose level? Even if they have no nausea and want to eat?

13. How does doing an intraoperative frozen section help in this study?

14. All patients are observed 6 hours in the PACU…so no discharge to the ICU or intermediate zone before?

Reviewer #2: Given the fact that the study is recruiting patients since 2020 discussion of the study protocol at this time appears futile. The underlying assumption of the study is an association of peri/postoperative hyperlactatemia in patients undergoing elective brain Tumor surgery. 450 patients are planned to be included of which 100 patients will receive additional testing for Insulin resistance and further 20 patients will have the arterial to jugular venous concentration difference tested.

My Major concern focusses on Patient selection. Adult patients scheduled for elective brain tumor surgery are eligible for study inclusion. However, brain tumor is not a useful classification, as it is not a coherent clinical or pathological entity. The authors determine tumor size and location. I could not find more details concerning tumor classification. However there is a relevant difference between the different types of intracranial tumors, not only in location and size. First, of all 37% of intracranial tumors are benign meningiomas. These tumors cannot be classified as “brain tumors” per se. In contrast, the largest group of intra-axial tumors are the the astrocytic gliomas. Within this group are highly malign tumors as well as rather benign entities. A third relevant group are brain metastasis with a wide variety of tumor biology. The authors mention the Warburg-effect as a relevant contributor to lactate levels. The existence of this effect in malign brain tumors such as the glioblastoma and brain metastasis has been described. However, the relevance of this specific tumor metabolism in meningiomas is not well understood. For a prospective study I would expect a more detailed definition of included patients concerning the tumor diagnosis. If hyperlactatemia is not induced by the tumor but by the procedure (that is craniotomy and intracranial surgery), other indications for surgery should be included.

Another aspect of patient selection, which is not clarified in the protocol, is the process of selecting which patient receives an additional investigation either insulin resistance or a jugular bulb catheter for extended blood probes. Are these patients randomly chosen? If so, how is this done?

There are other minor imprecise statements within this study protocol. For patients who are chosen or qualify (?) for additional insulin resistance analysis, blood samples are taken “the morning after surgery”. I would assume a more precise definition of time (e. g. hours after end of surgery) is necessary to guarantee for comparability of data.

There are many confounding factors for hyperlactatemia, for instance post- or intraoperative complications and preoperative comorbidities. How are these identified and registered? Are common scoring systems used? (e. g. Charlson Comorbidity Index, Clavien-Dindo classification system).

How is neurological status recorded? The authors state that status is recorded “through standard neurological examination”. To make data comparable more details of this standard examination would be necessary.

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PLoS One. 2022 Jul 21;17(7):e0271682. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0271682.r002

Author response to Decision Letter 0


3 Jun 2022

Dear Dr Spina and reviewers,

Thank you for your thorough work and insightful comments to our manuscript. We have revised it according to your suggestions and believe that it has improved considerably during this process.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Reviewer #1: Thank you for submitting the study protocol.

This is a quite an endeavour to be undertaken.

Thank you for your kind comment.

1. What is the expected time frame for completion? With these difficult covid times, still possible to undertake such volume load?

Many research projects have indeed been delayed by the pandemic. Luckily, cancer surgery in Denmark has been minimally affected, and the project has therefore been running smoothly. Currently, all 450 patients have been included in the study; the last patient was included in February, 2022. We have, however, not completed data sampling.

2. How does lactate relate to rhabdomyolysis?

Damaged and ischemic skeletal muscle cells may produce lactate, and rhabdomyolysis may thus be associated with increasing S-lactate levels. In neurosurgery, rhabdomyolysis has been reported in patients who are placed in the lateral position, and with durations of surgery exceeding 5 hours. However, rhabdomyolysis could be an underdiagnosed condition, especially in patients with high BMI.

We have addressed this in the manuscript on page 3, line 59 and page 15-16, line 307-315.

3. Would patient positioning affect lactate level as well? Patient mobility pre and post op?

Thank you for this suggestion. We have added position during surgery as an exploratory endpoint in the study (page 12, line 237). We evaluate patient mobilization in the Post Anesthesia Recovery Unit as a separate exploratory endpoint.

4. A patient with known primary cancer would still be included in the study? Their preop lactate level may be more elevated compared to the standard?

We agree with the reviewer that this is an important issue. We include patients with brain metastasis in the study. As tumor cells produce lactate, patients with greater tumor load, such as patients with both a primary tumor and metastases, may have higher S-lactate levels. First measurement of lactate might reflect this tendency, with higher initial S-lactate levels amongst patients who undergo tumor craniotomy due to a metastasis. We will therefor calculate the “pure” perioperative contribution of lactate load (e.g. mean S-lactate minus S-lactate at surgical incision, see “Definitions and calculations”).

We have clarified this on page 16-17, line 334-338.

5. Does the lactate level correlate with the preoperative dose and time duration of dexamethasone treatment?

We thank the reviewer for raising this point, as this is one the most important questions of the study and one of our main hypotheses (please see page 17, line 347-350). To make this clearer to the reader, we have elaborated on this in the section on exploratory outcomes (page 12, line 233-234)

Dexamethasone may elevate lactate perioperatively. We have added changes and a reference (page 16, line 329-332) to substantiate this statement.

6. Whether or not the patient underwent previous chemotherapy treatment or immunotherapy treatment affect lactate levels?

In theory, preoperative chemotherapy, radiation, or immunotherapy should reduce the tumor load and therefore decrease any tumor-induced lactate elevation. Preoperative chemotherapy is one of our exploratory outcomes. We have now added preoperative radiation and immunotherapy as exploratory outcomes (page 12, line 232) and elaborated on the possible effect of such preoperative treatment on lactate levels (page 17, line 337-338).

7. Why are samples collected until 6 hrs post op? why not till they ambulate or 12 hrs?

We agree that it would have been interesting to measure lactate for a longer period. This design was chosen due to the structure and organization of our department. With a few exceptions, patient undergoing tumor craniotomy are observed for 6 hours in the Post Anesthesia Recovery Unit and are thereafter moved to the Neurosurgery Ward. Arterial puncture is associated with discomfort and complications such as hematoma, occlusion and pseudoaneurysm. We therefore designed the study with hourly blood samples from an arterial cannula that is placed preoperatively as part of the standard perioperative monitoring. Upon discharge from the Recovery Unit, the arterial cannula is removed. It has therefore not been possible for us to continue with our hourly measurements of lactate after transfer to the Neurosurgery Ward. We elaborate on this on page 9, line 170 and page 16, line 321-323.

8. Does the type of IV fluid given pre, intra and post op vary? Normal saline vs ½ NS vs Ringer lactate?

As an exploratory outcome for hyperlactatemia, we wish to study IV fluid volume and type during surgery and in the Post Anesthesia Recovery unit (clarified on page 12, line 244). The standard in our department is IV fluid treatment with isotonic saline, although some patients do receive Ringer lactate upon clinical indication (we have added a description of this on page 16, line 317-320).

9. Are patients given any 20% mannitol pre or intra or post op?

We do not use mannitol in our department. This has been clarified on page 16, line 319.

10. How about hypertonic saline solution?

This will be registered together with other IV treatment type and volume (page 16, line 318-320).

11. What is the expected loss of follow up rate? Especially if a patient is diagnosed with a glioblastoma, survival till 5 year is rare.

This is a very important concern as many patients probably will die during the follow up. We have addressed this on page 14, line 283-285.

12. Are patient not allowed to eat until the next morning to asses their fasting glucose level? Even if they have no nausea and want to eat?

Thank you for the opportunity to clarify this point. Patients are allowed to eat and drink from their arrival in the Post Anesthesia Recovery Unit and in the Neurosurgery Ward. The day after surgery, they will be fasting from 2.00 am until blood sampling at 7.30 am. We have added this clarification to the manuscript on page 9, line 167-168 and page 9, line 176.

13. How does doing an intraoperative frozen section help in this study?

As per clinical routine, we take an intraoperative biopsy of the tumor, which is then processed at the Department of Pathology. In our study, we use this histopathological analysis to classify tumor type (see page 9, line 177-178), in order to analyze potentially different profiles of hyperlactatemia between different tumor types.

14. All patients are observed 6 hours in the PACU…so no discharge to the ICU or intermediate zone before?

Yes, that is correct. Unless patients develop special requirement for intensive care, they are discharged to the Neurosurgery Ward. The Post Anesthesia Recovery Unit is subdivision of the Department of Neurointensive Care.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Reviewer #2:

Given the fact that the study is recruiting patients since 2020 discussion of the study protocol at this time appears futile. The underlying assumption of the study is an association of peri/postoperative hyperlactatemia in patients undergoing elective brain Tumor surgery. 450 patients are planned to be included of which 100 patients will receive additional testing for Insulin resistance and further 20 patients will have the arterial to jugular venous concentration difference tested.

My Major concern focusses on Patient selection. Adult patients scheduled for elective brain tumor surgery are eligible for study inclusion. However, brain tumor is not a useful classification, as it is not a coherent clinical or pathological entity. The authors determine tumor size and location. I could not find more details concerning tumor classification. However there is a relevant difference between the different types of intracranial tumors, not only in location and size. First, of all 37% of intracranial tumors are benign meningiomas. These tumors cannot be classified as “brain tumors” per se. In contrast, the largest group of intra-axial tumors are the the astrocytic gliomas. Within this group are highly malign tumors as well as rather benign entities. A third relevant group are brain metastasis with a wide variety of tumor biology. The authors mention the Warburg-effect as a relevant contributor to lactate levels. The existence of this effect in malign brain tumors such as the glioblastoma and brain metastasis has been described. However, the relevance of this specific tumor metabolism in meningiomas is not well understood. For a prospective study I would expect a more detailed definition of included patients concerning the tumor diagnosis. If hyperlactatemia is not induced by the tumor but by the procedure (that is craniotomy and intracranial surgery), other indications for surgery should be included.

We thank the review for these salient remarks. We fully agree that intracranial tumors are highly diverse regarding type, size, and location; even so, hyperlactatemia has been observed perioperatively across these different characteristics. That said, we fully agree with the reviewer that this is an important opportunity to analyze potentially different lactate profiles by these different tumor characteristics. Classification of tumor type will be based on histopathological finding of the Department of Pathology from the tissue collected intraoperatively (please see page 9, line 177-179, where we have added a level of classification to avoid p hacking), as we believe that this is the most correct way to differentiate between tumor types. We have added a clarification on page 14-15, line 291-292.

We also agree that benign meningiomas are not “brain tumors” per se, even though some classification systems (e.g. American Association of Neurological Surgeons) define it as such. As we initially set out to study hyperlactatemia across tumor types, aiming to analyze the profile of lactate by tumor type, we have included meningiomas of all grades in our study.

It would also be interesting to study hyperlactatemia in regard to procedure. We plan on doing a pilot study with the same design on patients undergoing craniotomy to treat unruptured intracranial aneurisms.

We have added page 17, line 339-344 to elucidate these important points.

Another aspect of patient selection, which is not clarified in the protocol, is the process of selecting which patient receives an additional investigation either insulin resistance or a jugular bulb catheter for extended blood probes. Are these patients randomly chosen? If so, how is this done?

This is a highly relevant remark and we thank the reviewer for making it. All patients are included consecutively, in the order in which the studies are mentioned. This consecutive order also applies for investigation and patient data collection. We believe that patients represent a random sample of the population of patients with intracranial tumors admitted to our hospital, covering the catchment area of eastern Denmark, regardless of tumor type, size, or location. We have added a clarification of this on page 14, line 280.

There are other minor imprecise statements within this study protocol. For patients who are chosen or qualify (?) for additional insulin resistance analysis, blood samples are taken “the morning after surgery”. I would assume a more precise definition of time (e. g. hours after end of surgery) is necessary to guarantee for comparability of data.

The morning sampling rounds in our department occur at 7-8 am. We have added a more precise time for blood samples taken on the morning after surgery on page 9, line 176. When comparing the analysis, it will be important to adjust the measurements for hours after surgery as surgery starting time varies between patients (changes added on page 11, line 212).

There are many confounding factors for hyperlactatemia, for instance post- or intraoperative complications and preoperative comorbidities. How are these identified and registered? Are common scoring systems used? (e. g. Charlson Comorbidity Index, Clavien-Dindo classification system).

This is an excellent point and suggestion. We have added these specifications on page 11, line 227 and page 12, line 236 Preoperative morbidity will be registered by the Charlson Comorbidity Index and the severity of postoperative complications will be classified by the Landriel Ibañez classification system, a four-grade scale based on the therapy used to treat the neurosurgical complications, similarly to the Clavien-Dindo classification system.

How is neurological status recorded? The authors state that status is recorded “through standard neurological examination”. To make data comparable more details of this standard examination would be necessary.

Patients are examined at admission and discharge and any neurological deficits will be recorded in the patient journal. We focus on new neurological deficits, which are always noted in the patient journal.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

We have now added the relevant changes to our manuscript based on the excellent suggestion from the reviewers. Thank you again for taking the time to make our work more thorough and well-considered.

Kind regards,

Alexandra Vassilieva, Kirsten Møller, Jane Skjøth-Rasmussen and Martin Kryspin Sørensen

Attachment

Submitted filename: Rebuttal Letter.docx

Decision Letter 1

Alfio Spina

6 Jul 2022

Hyperlactatemia associated with elective tumor craniotomy: protocol for an observational study of pathophysiology and clinical implications.

PONE-D-21-37350R1

Dear Dr. Vassilieva,

We’re pleased to inform you that your manuscript has been judged scientifically suitable for publication and will be formally accepted for publication once it meets all outstanding technical requirements.

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Kind regards,

Alfio Spina, M.D.

Academic Editor

PLOS ONE

Additional Editor Comments (optional):

Reviewers' comments:

Acceptance letter

Alfio Spina

12 Jul 2022

PONE-D-21-37350R1

Hyperlactatemia associated with elective tumor craniotomy: protocol for an observational study of pathophysiology and clinical implications.

Dear Dr. Vassilieva:

I'm pleased to inform you that your manuscript has been deemed suitable for publication in PLOS ONE. Congratulations! Your manuscript is now with our production department.

If your institution or institutions have a press office, please let them know about your upcoming paper now to help maximize its impact. If they'll be preparing press materials, please inform our press team within the next 48 hours. Your manuscript will remain under strict press embargo until 2 pm Eastern Time on the date of publication. For more information please contact onepress@plos.org.

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on behalf of

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Associated Data

    This section collects any data citations, data availability statements, or supplementary materials included in this article.

    Supplementary Materials

    S1 File. Strobe checklist.

    Strobe checklist for “Hyperlactatemia associated with elective tumor craniotomy: protocol for an observational study of pathophysiology and clinical implications”.

    (DOC)

    Attachment

    Submitted filename: Rebuttal Letter.docx

    Data Availability Statement

    No datasets were generated or analysed during the current study. All relevant data from this study will be made available upon study completion. Upon study completion, in compliance with Danish law and the Global Data Protection Regulation of the European Union, the collected data will not be made publicly available, but may be made available to interested parties upon reasonable request and preparation of a Data Sharing Agreement.


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