Christian Schnedl

Effect of high-dose vitamin D3 on hospital length of stay in critically ill patients with vitamin D deficiency: the VITdAL-ICU randomized clinical trial.

IMPORTANCE Low vitamin D status is linked to increased mortality and morbidity in patients who are critically ill. It is unknown if this association is causal. OBJECTIVE To investigate whether a vitamin D3 treatment regimen intended to restore and maintain normal vitamin D status over 6 months is of health benefit for patients in ICUs. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS A randomized double-blind, placebo-controlled, single-center trial, conducted from May 2010 through September 2012 at 5 ICUs that included a medical and surgical population of 492 critically ill adult white patients with vitamin D deficiency (≤20 ng/mL) assigned to receive either vitamin D3 (n = 249) or a placebo (n = 243). INTERVENTIONS Vitamin D3 or placebo was given orally or via nasogastric tube once at a dose of 540,000 IU followed by monthly maintenance doses of 90,000 IU for 5 months. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES The primary outcome was hospital length of stay. Secondary outcomes included, among others, length of ICU stay, the percentage of patients with 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels higher than 30 ng/mL at day 7, hospital mortality, and 6-month mortality. A predefined severe vitamin D deficiency (≤12 ng/mL) subgroup analysis was specified before data unblinding and analysis. RESULTS A total of 475 patients were included in the final analysis (237 in the vitamin D3 group and 238 in the placebo group). The median (IQR) length of hospital stay was not significantly different between groups (20.1 days [IQR, 11.1-33.3] for vitamin D3 vs 19.3 days [IQR, 11.1-34.9] for placebo; P = .98). Hospital mortality and 6-month mortality were also not significantly different (hospital mortality: 28.3% [95% CI, 22.6%-34.5%] for vitamin D3 vs 35.3% [95% CI, 29.2%-41.7%] for placebo; hazard ratio [HR], 0.81 [95% CI, 0.58-1.11]; P = .18; 6-month mortality: 35.0% [95% CI, 29.0%-41.5%] for vitamin D3 vs 42.9% [95% CI, 36.5%-49.4%] for placebo; HR, 0.78 [95% CI, 0.58-1.04]; P = .09). For the severe vitamin D deficiency subgroup analysis (n = 200), length of hospital stay was not significantly different between the 2 study groups: 20.1 days (IQR, 12.9-39.1) for vitamin D3 vs 19.0 days (IQR, 11.6-33.8) for placebo. Hospital mortality was significantly lower with 28 deaths among 98 patients (28.6% [95% CI, 19.9%-38.6%]) for vitamin D3 compared with 47 deaths among 102 patients (46.1% [95% CI, 36.2%-56.2%]) for placebo (HR, 0.56 [95% CI, 0.35-0.90], P for interaction = .04), but not 6-month mortality (34.7% [95% CI, 25.4%-45.0%] for vitamin D3 vs 50.0% [95% CI, 39.9%-60.1%] for placebo; HR, 0.60 [95% CI, 0.39-0.93], P for interaction = .12). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE Among critically ill patients with vitamin D deficiency, administration of high-dose vitamin D3 compared with placebo did not reduce hospital length of stay, hospital mortality, or 6-month mortality. Lower hospital mortality was observed in the severe vitamin D deficiency subgroup, but this finding should be considered hypothesis generating and requires further study. TRIAL REGISTRATION clinicaltrials.gov Identifier: NCT01130181.

Short-term effects of high-dose oral vitamin D3 in critically ill vitamin D deficient patients: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled pilot study

IntroductionVitamin D deficiency is encountered frequently in critically ill patients and might be harmful. Current nutrition guidelines recommend very low vitamin D doses. The objective of this trial was to evaluate the safety and efficacy of a single oral high-dose vitamin D3 supplementation in an intensive care setting over a one-week observation period.MethodsThis was a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled pilot study in a medical ICU at a tertiary care university center in Graz, Austria. Twenty-five patients (mean age 62 ± 16yrs) with vitamin D deficiency [25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) ≤20 ng/ml] and an expected stay in the ICU >48 hours were included and randomly received either 540,000 IU (corresponding to 13.5 mg) of cholecalciferol (VITD) dissolved in 45 ml herbal oil or matched placebo (PBO) orally or via feeding tube.ResultsThe mean serum 25(OH)D increase in the intervention group was 25 ng/ml (range 1-47 ng/ml). The highest 25(OH)D level reached was 64 ng/ml, while two patients showed a small (7 ng/ml) or no response (1 ng/ml). Hypercalcemia or hypercalciuria did not occur in any patient. From day 0 to day 7, total serum calcium levels increased by 0.10 (PBO) and 0.15 mmol/L (VITD; P < 0.05 for both), while ionized calcium levels increased by 0.11 (PBO) and 0.05 mmol/L (VITD; P < 0.05 for both). Parathyroid hormone levels decreased by 19 and 28 pg/ml (PBO and VITD, ns) over the seven days, while 1,25(OH)D showed a transient significant increase in the VITD group only.ConclusionsThis pilot study shows that a single oral ultra-high dose of cholecalciferol corrects vitamin D deficiency within 2 days in most patients without causing adverse effects like hypercalcemia or hypercalciuria. Further research is needed to confirm our results and establish whether vitamin D supplementation can affect the clinical outcome of vitamin D deficient critically ill patients.EudraCT Number2009-012080-34German Clinical Trials Register (DRKS)DRKS00000750

Correction of vitamin D deficiency in critically ill patients - VITdAL@ICU study protocol of a double-blind, placebo-controlled randomized clinical trial

BackgroundVitamin D deficiency is associated with multiple adverse health outcomes including increased morbidity and mortality in the general population and in critically ill patients. However, no randomized controlled trial has evaluated so far whether treatment with sufficiently large doses of vitamin D can improve clinical outcome of patients in an intensive care setting.Methods/designThe VITdAL@ICU trial is an investigator-initiated, non-commercial, double-blind, placebo-controlled randomized clinical trial. This study compares high-dose oral cholecalciferol (vitamin D3) versus placebo treatment in a mixed population of 480 critically ill patients with low 25-hydroxyvitamin-D levels at study enrollment (≤ 20ng/ml). Following an initial loading dose of 540,000 IU of vitamin D3, patients receive 90,000 IU of vitamin D3 on a monthly basis for 5 months. The study is designed to compare clinical outcome in the two study arms with the primary endpoint being length of hospital stay. Secondary endpoints include among others length of ICU stay, the percentage of patients with 25(OH)D levels > 30 ng/ml at day 7, ICU and hospital mortality and duration of mechanical ventilation. We describe here the VITdAL@ICU study protocol for the primary report.DiscussionThis trial is designed to evaluate whether high-dose vitamin D3 is able to improve morbidity and mortality in a mixed population of adult critically ill patients and correct vitamin D deficiency safely.Trial registrationClinicalTrials: NCT01130181

Standardized Glycemic Management with a Computerized Workflow and Decision Support System for Hospitalized Patients with Type 2 Diabetes on Different Wards.

Abstract Background: This study investigated the efficacy, safety, and usability of standardized glycemic management by a computerized decision support system for non-critically ill hospitalized patients with type 2 diabetes on four different wards. Materials and Methods: In this open, noncontrolled intervention study, glycemic management of 99 patients with type 2 diabetes (62% acute admissions; 41 females; age, 67±11 years; hemoglobin A1c, 65±21 mmol/mol; body mass index, 30.4±6.5 kg/m2) on clinical wards (Cardiology, Endocrinology, Nephrology, Plastic Surgery) of a tertiary-care hospital was guided by GlucoTab® (Joanneum Research GmbH [Graz, Austria] and Medical University of Graz [Graz, Austria]), a mobile decision support system providing automated workflow support and suggestions for insulin dosing to nurses and physicians. Results: Adherence to insulin dosing suggestions was high (96.5% bolus, 96.7% basal). The primary outcome measure, percentage of blood glucose (BG) measurements in the range of 70–140 mg/dL, occurred in 50.2±22.2% of all measurements. The overall mean BG level was 154±35 mg/dL. BG measurements in the ranges of 60–70 mg/dL, 40–60 mg/dL, and <40 mg/dL occurred in 1.4%, 0.5%, and 0.0% of all measurements, respectively. A regression analysis showed that acute admission to the Cardiology Ward (+30 mg/dL) and preexisting home insulin therapy (+26 mg/dL) had the strongest impact on mean BG. Acute admission to other wards had minor effects (+4 mg/dL). Ninety-one percent of the healthcare professionals felt confident with GlucoTab, and 89% believed in its practicality and 80% in its ability to prevent medication errors. Conclusions: An efficacious, safe, and user-accepted implementation of GlucoTab was demonstrated. However, for optimized personalized patient care, further algorithm modifications are required.

FGF23 in Acute and Chronic Illness

FGF23 is a bone-derived phosphaturic hormone that may become a useful biomarker for the identification of high-risk patients in chronic but also acute disease. It rises early in chronic kidney disease and is strongly and independently associated with excess morbidity and mortality. Emerging data suggest that FGF23 is also elevated in different scenarios of acute illness. In this review, we give an overview on the role of this interesting disease marker and potential and proven interventional strategies and discuss a blueprint for future research.

Vitamin D Intervention Trials in Critical Illness

Vitamin D deficiency is common in critically ill patients and has been associated with adverse outcomes. Although many interesting observational studies have been published, only four small randomized controlled trials have been conducted in this vulnerable population. Endpoints included bone turnover, inflammatory markers and safety/efficacy issues. However, all of these trials were underpowered to detect clinically relevant endpoints due to their small sample size. Therefore, future studies focusing on morbidity and mortality endpoints are necessary in order to clarify whether vitamin D deficiency is only a surrogate marker for disease severity or whether treatment with sufficiently large doses of vitamin D may improve patient outcome in an intensive care setting.

Results from the Implementation of a Surgical Safety Checklist (SSC) at an Interventional Radiology Unit

Background The awareness of the necessity of a strong safety culture is of utmost importance to enhance patient’s safety and has been reiterated for years in the healthcare system [1,2]. Therefore, a surgical safety checklist (SSC) was implemented in a pilot phase to improve and optimize patient’s safety during interventional procedures at the division for vascular and interventional radiology in autumn 2014, where on average 4,000 procedures/per year are performed. The purpose of this retrospective analysis was to analyze SSC-compliance in order to adapt and ameliorate it, respectively.