Certain factors may independently increase the risk for mechanical ventilation following a sepsis diagnosis, according to a study published in the American Journal of Critical Care. Robert Freundlich, MD, MS, MSCI, and colleagues used EHR data from 28,747 patients with sepsis to model risk factors for initiation of mechanical ventilation after sepsis onset. Mechanical ventilation was initiated within 30 days of sepsis onset in 13.5% of patients, with 52.6% requiring mechanical ventilation within 24 hours of diagnosis. Race (White: adjusted HR [aHR], 1.59; other/unknown: adjusted HR, 1.97), systemic inflammatory response syndrome (aHR [per point], 1.23), Sequential Organ Failure Assessment score (aHR [per point], 1.28), and congestive heart failure (aHR, 1.30) were independently associated with an increased likelihood of receipt of mechanical ventilation. Risk varied with time after sepsis onset and by comorbidities. “Through a better understanding of risk factors for initiation of mechanical ventilation in patients with sepsis, targeted interventions may be tailored to high-risk patients,” Dr. Freundlich and colleagues wrote.
