Background: Community-acquired intra-abdominal infections (CA-IAIs) exhibit significant clinical heterogeneity. However, most studies focusing on CA-IAIs do not stratify comparisons by infection site. Methods: This post hoc analysis of the prospective multicenter PERICOM cohort (13 French university hospitals, April 2018 to February 2019) included adult patients with CA-IAIs requiring surgical management. We compared clinical characteristics, microbiology, and outcomes between appendicular and non-appendicular sites. Secondary analyses assessed the impact of Enterococcus spp., Pseudomonas aeruginosa, or fungal documentation, and the theoretical coverage of empirical antibiotic regimens. Results: Of the 205 patients, 86 (42%) had appendicular and 119 (58%) had non-appendicular CA-IAIs. Appendicular CA-IAIs involved younger patients with fewer comorbidities and were followed by fewer major postoperative complications (Clavien-Dindo score ≥ 3: 10% versus 43%, p < 0.001) and no deaths (0% versus 12%, p < 0.001). Among 118 culture-positive patients, appendicular CA-IAIs showed higher rates of non-fermenting Gram-negative bacilli (25% versus 10%, p = 0.046) and anaerobes (53% versus 28%, p = 0.008) and were more often polymicrobial (76% versus 55%, p = 0.020). Conversely, Staphylococcus spp. (0% versus 9%, p = 0.036) and fungal co-infection (0% versus 12%, p = 0.010) were confined to non-appendicular CA-IAIs. Furthermore, Enterococcus spp. documentation (24/118, 20%) identified patients with greater admission severity and higher 28-day mortality (33% versus 2%, p < 0.001). Amoxicillin-clavulanic acid plus gentamicin covered the isolates of 92% of patients versus 61% for third-generation cephalosporin plus metronidazole (p < 0.001), a difference identical in both appendicular and non-appendicular sites. Conclusions: Appendicular and non-appendicular CA-IAIs appear to be distinct entities, supporting stratified management. Future guidelines should consider site-specific strategies, therapeutic individualization, and the integration of CA-IAI ecology.
Discomfort of noninvasive respiratory supports remain controversial. In the present study, the discomfort of high flow nasal cannula oxygen, noninvasive ventilation, and conventional oxygen therapy were evaluated in the post-extubation period. Noninvasive ventilation alternating with high flow nasal cannula oxygen or conventional oxygen therapy were implemented for 48 h following extubation in patients free of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Using a 10-cm visual analog scale, the discomfort of the interface (oxygen mask, nasal prongs or facial mask), was self-evaluated by 264 patients after extubation whereas the discomfort of the respiratory support (conventional oxygen therapy or high flow nasal cannula oxygen alternating with noninvasive ventilation) was evaluated by the nurses in 306 patients. Evaluations were performed in patients at high (n = 127) and low (n = 179) risk of postextubation respiratory failure, 6, 24 and 48 h after extubation. Facial mask was the source of a significant and persisting self-evaluated discomfort. Nasal prongs and oxygen mask were less uncomfortable, with a progressive reduction of the discomfort with time. High flow nasal cannula oxygen alternating with noninvasive ventilation caused a significant and persisting nurse-reported discomfort. Conventional oxygen therapy was significantly less uncomfortable, and the degree of discomfort was not different in patients at high and low risk of extubation failure. Noninvasive ventilation was associated with a significant and persisting discomfort whereas high flow nasal cannula oxygen-induced discomfort remained limited. After 48 h, discomfort resulting from high flow nasal cannula oxygen and conventional oxygen therapy was similar and negligible.
Since 1992, food-based dietary guidelines (FBDGs) have been developed worldwide to help consumers and society on a larger scale make informed food choices for their health. However, the global prevalence of chronic diseases continues to increase, raising questions about the effectiveness of FBDGs in addressing the broader determinants of health, and in promoting sustainable food systems. Therefore, this policy and practice review intends to identify and summarize the main shortcomings of the current FBDGs. The more detailed focus on sustainability and food processing issues showed that these two dimensions are still lacking or insufficiently considered in current FBDGs, hindering the formulation of robust recommendations for protecting global health. Based on this analysis, we propose several paradigms shifts to increase the relevance and coherence of future FBDGs: moving from food pyramids to technological pyramids; shifting from the currently excessive quantitative and food group-based recommendations toward more qualitative and holistic guidance; emphasizing the role of the food matrix rather than isolated nutrients; and integrating sustainability and regenerative agricultural practices more explicitly. The overarching challenge lies in designing FBDGs that adopt a systems-oriented, holistic approach—one that reflects the interconnectedness of human, environmental, and societal wellbeing, and that organizes and hierarchizes nutritional information from broad dietary patterns down to specific nutrients.
Aims Acute heart failure (AHF) represents a major cause of morbi-mortality. In the last decade, the management of HF has changed, but up-to-date real-life data are scarce. The aim of our study was to describe contemporary data about AHF patients' medical pathway, management and to identify predictors of in-hospital outcomes.Methods and results OFICA2 is a French prospective multicenter cohort led from March to April 2021 in 80 participating centres. In-hospital outcomes were defined as a composite of all-cause death, cardiogenic shock or transfer to intensive care unit. A total of 1513 consecutive patients (mean age 76 years, 61% male) hospitalized for AHF were included. One in five patients was not admitted in cardiology wards. A triggering factor was identified in 70% of cases, mostly supraventricular arrhythmia (21%). Median hospital stay was 11 days, and in-hospital mortality was 4.6%. Predictive factors of worse outcomes were a younger age, an initial acute coronary syndrome, a ventricular arrhythmia, a left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) <= 40%, a lower systolic blood pressure, a worse kidney function, and a higher C-reactive protein level on admission. At discharge, 61% of patients had an appointment scheduled with a cardiologist, 1 out of 4 patients with LVEF <= 40% had a combination of beta-blocker, renin-angiotensin system blocker and mineralocorticoid receptor antagonist, while 12% had no HF medication.Conclusion This comprehensive survey about patients hospitalized with AHF emphasizes HF care pathway, medical therapies and follow-up as weak spots. Filling these gaps might improve patients' management and prognosis. This paper reports the entire out- and in-hospital journey of patients with Acute Heart Failure (AHF), in a large prospective multicenter database. The OFICA2 cohort included 1513 patients hospitalized for AHF in 80 participating centres during a 3-week period in 2021. A unique aspect of this cohort is the inclusion of all AHF patients, including those not hospitalized in cardiology wards, with an interdisciplinary care pathway. The OFICA2 survey provides robust contemporary data on AHF management, including the medical pathway, in-hospital resource use, and prognosis. These results will enhance knowledge on AHF epidemiology and management.
BACKGROUND:International guidelines have emphasized the necessity of evaluating the temporal stability of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) subphenotypes. This study aimed to assess the temporal stability of subphenotypes of ARDS over 28 days. METHODS:A reanalysis of a randomized trial was conducted, including patients with COVID-19-related moderate-to-severe ARDS across 43 centers. A K-means clustering was conducted to identify subphenotypes at 7-day intervals from inclusion to day 28. A Bayesian discrete-time Markov model was constructed to assess the temporal stability of subphenotypes. RESULTS:Two subphenotypes were identified among 146 patients. At inclusion, 121 (83%) patients were in the hypoinflammatory subphenotype and 25 (17%) in the hyperinflammatory subphenotype. The hyperinflammatory subphenotype was associated with higher rates of organ failure, higher plasma levels of cytokines, chemokines, adhesion molecules, and proangiogenic factors, and lower endothelial stability than the hypoinflammatory subphenotype. The hyperinflammatory subphenotype was associated with higher 28-day mortality (13/25, 52% vs. 30/121, 25%, p = 0.001) and fewer ventilatory-free-days through day 28 (p < 0.01) than the hypoinflammatory subphenotype. In the Bayesian Markov model, over 7-day intervals, patients in the hypoinflammatory subphenotype had a higher probability of remaining hypoinflammatory (70%) or being extubated (17%) than of progressing to the hyperinflammatory subphenotype (7%). Inversely, patients in the hyperinflammatory subphenotype had a higher probability of remaining in the hyperinflammatory subphenotype (52%) or dying (23%) than of transitioning to the hypoinflammatory subphenotype (20%) or being extubated (5%). CONCLUSIONS:Inflammatory subphenotypes were stable in COVID-19-related ARDS, with few transitions over 28 days. Monitoring these subphenotypes could be valuable for assessing patient trajectories and treatment responses.
