Increased Mortality Rate (increased + mortality_rate)

Distribution by Scientific Domains


Selected Abstracts


Wing wear, aerodynamics and flight energetics in bumblebees (Bombus terrestris): an experimental study

FUNCTIONAL ECOLOGY, Issue 4 2001
A. Hedenström
Summary 1,Previous work has shown that wing wear increases mortality rate in bumblebees. Two proximate explanations have been suggested to account for this: increased energy flight costs and increased predation risk due to reduced manoeuvrability. 2,Wing wear was mimicked by experimentally clipping the forewing distal trailing edge, causing a 10% wing area reduction. Experimental and sham control bumblebees were induced to hover in a flight respirometry chamber for measuring metabolic rate of hovering. Simultaneous video and sound recordings were taken for wingbeat kinematic data required for an aerodynamic analysis. 3,In the experimental group with reduced wing area we measured increased wingbeat frequency, lift coefficient and induced power, but a reduced profile power. The mechanical power output, assuming perfect elastic storage in the flight system, remained largely unchanged after the wing-trimming treatment. 4,Metabolic flight costs (CO2 production rate) did not increase significantly in the reduced wing area group, which is in line with the aerodynamic power output. 5,Our results indicate that an increase of flight cost due to wing wear is not a likely explanation for increased mortality rate in bumblebees. Wing wear may, however, affect escape performance from predators. [source]


Antiplatelet drug use preceding the onset of intracerebral hemorrhage is associated with increased mortality

FUNDAMENTAL & CLINICAL PHARMACOLOGY, Issue 3 2007
Karine Lacut
Abstract Recent studies highlight the contribution of antiplatelet therapy to clinical severity and increased mortality of intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) but results are discrepant. The aim of this report was to evaluate the association between antiplatelet drug use preceding the onset of ICH and the mortality, assessed at regular intervals, among patients with acute ICH. We analyzed data from a randomized study which enrolled consecutive patients with a documented acute ICH to evaluate the efficacy of intermittent pneumatic compression of the legs in venous thrombosis prevention. Clinical characteristics and treatment used before the onset of ICH were checked at the time of inclusion. Mortality was assessed at regular intervals until 3 months after ICH diagnosis. Among 138 patients included in this report, 30 were current users of antiplatelet therapy at the time of ICH; they were significantly older and less frequently heavy drinkers than non-users of antiplatelet drugs. Mortality rates were 20% at 8 days, 40% at 1 month, and 47% at 3 months among antiplatelet drug users compared with 6.5%, 13% and 19% among non-users. The corresponding estimated risks for mortality related to antiplatelet drug use were 3.6 (95% CI 1.1,12), 4.5 (95% CI 1.8,11), and 3.6 (95% CI 1.5,8.6). Adjusted for age, hypertension and alcohol over use, antiplatelet therapy remained significantly associated with an increased mortality rate of acute ICH. Current antiplatelet drug use preceding the onset of ICH is associated with increased short-term ICH mortality, independently of age. [source]


Aspergillus fumigatus peritonitis in ambulatory peritoneal dialysis: A case report and notes on the therapeutic approach (Case Report)

NEPHROLOGY, Issue 3 2005
LUCIANA BONFANTE
SUMMARY: Aspergillus peritonitis is a rare disease in continuous peritoneal dialysis. It is a severe form of peritonitis, which is frequently lethal. We report a case of Aspergillus fumigatus peritonitis in a female patient on automated peritoneal dialysis (APD), who was successfully treated with intravenous amphotericin B and the removal of the peritoneal catheter. As delayed treatment has an increased mortality rate, it is mandatory to remove the catheter and to start intravenous treatment with amphotericin B empirically. [source]


Contribution of perospirone and risperidone to reduce delirium in senile patients

PSYCHOGERIATRICS, Issue 1 2008
Michikazu USHIJIMA
Abstract Background:, Serotonin,dopamine antagonists (SDAs) inhibit dopaminergic transmission in the mesolimbic system less than in the nigrostriatal dopaminergic pathway, which relates to the extrapyramidal side-effects of these drugs. The SDAs seem to have an adequate receptor binding profile for the management of the behavioral and psychiatric symptoms of dementia. However, clinicians are discouraged from prescribing SDAs for elderly patients because of an advisory statement from the US Food and Drug Administration that warns about an increased mortality rate among elderly patients treated with atypical antipsychotics. Methods:, We conducted a retrospective study involving 16 elderly patients (mean age 84.9 years; range 67,94 years) with delirium who were treated with one of two SDAs, namely perospirone (4,12 mg/day) or risperidone (1,2 mg/day). The time-course of their psychiatric symptoms was assessed using subcategories of the Delirium Rating Scale (DRS) before treatment and on Days 10 and 24 of treatment. Results:, Total DRS scores were significantly decreased from baseline in both treatment groups. Both agents led to significant improvements from baseline in psychomotor behavior and lability of mood. Of interest, perospirone decreased hallucinations and delusions and improved sleep,awake cycle disturbances compared with baseline. No serious side-effects were seen with either drug. Conclusions:, Both perospirone and risperidone are effective in the management of delirium in elderly patients. The improvement in the sleep,awake cycle with perospirone may be derived from its short pharmacological half-life. [source]


Primary central nervous system vasculitis: analysis of 101 patients

ANNALS OF NEUROLOGY, Issue 5 2007
Carlo Salvarani MD
Objective To analyze the clinical findings, response to therapy, outcome, and incidence of primary central nervous system vasculitis (PCNSV) in a large cohort from a single center Methods We retrospectively studied 101 patients with PCNSV, selected by predetermined diagnostic criteria, who were seen during a 21-year period. This was a collaborative study by five departments at a large multispecialty clinic. Clinical findings and outcomes were compared among patients categorized by method of diagnosis, response to therapy, survival, and degree of disability. An annual incidence rate was calculated Results Seventy patients were diagnosed by angiography and 31 by central nervous system biopsy. Three histological patterns were observed during biopsy. Although most patients responded to therapy, an increased mortality rate was observed. Relapses occurred in one fourth of patients. Mortality rate and disability at last follow-up were greater in those who presented with a focal neurological deficit, cognitive impairment, cerebral infarctions, and angiographic large-vessel involvement but were lower in those with prominent gadolinium-enhanced lesions when evaluated by magnetic resonance imaging. The annual incidence rate of PCNSV was 2.4 cases per 1,000,000 person-years Interpretation PCNSV is a rare disease that may result in serious neurological outcomes or death. Angiography and brain biopsy may complement each other when determining the diagnosis. Early recognition and treatment may reduce poor outcomes. PCNSV is a variable syndrome that appears to consist of several subsets of heterogeneous diseases. Ann Neurol 2007 [source]


Eight Hours of Hypotensive versus Normotensive Resuscitation in a Porcine Model of Controlled Hemorrhagic Shock

ACADEMIC EMERGENCY MEDICINE, Issue 9 2008
David E. Skarda MD
Abstract Objectives:, The aim of this study was to compare hypotensive and normotensive resuscitation in a porcine model of hemorrhagic shock. Methods:, This was a prospective, comparative, randomized survival study of controlled hemorrhagic shock using 28 male Yorkshire-Landrace pigs (15 to 25 kg). In 24 splenectomized pigs, the authors induced hemorrhagic shock to a systolic blood pressure (sBP) of 48 to 58 mm Hg (,35% bleed). Pigs were randomized to undergo normotensive resuscitation (sBP of 90 mm Hg, n = 7), mild hypotensive resuscitation (sBP of 80 mm Hg, n = 7), severe hypotensive resuscitation (sBP of 65 mm Hg, n = 6), or no resuscitation (n = 4). The authors also included a sham group of animals that were instrumented and splenectomized, but that did not undergo hemorrhagic shock (n = 4). After the initial 8 hours of randomized pressure-targeted resuscitation, all animals were resuscitated to a sBP of 90 mm Hg for 16 hours. Results:, Animals that underwent severe hypotensive resuscitation were less likely to survive, compared with animals that underwent normotensive resuscitation. Mean arterial pressure (MAP) decreased with hemorrhage and increased appropriately with pressure-targeted resuscitation. Base excess (BE) and tissue oxygen saturation (StO2) decreased in all animals that underwent hemorrhagic shock. This decrease persisted only in animals that were pressure target resuscitated to a sBP of 65 mm Hg. Conclusions:, In this model of controlled hemorrhagic shock, initial severe hypotensive pressure-targeted resuscitation for 8 hours was associated with an increased mortality rate and led to a persistent base deficit (BD) and to decreased StO2, suggesting persistent metabolic stress and tissue hypoxia. However, mild hypotensive resuscitation did not lead to a persistent BD or to decreased StO2, suggesting less metabolic stress and less tissue hypoxia. [source]


Endothelin-1 levels predict 3-year survival in patients who have amputation for critical leg ischaemia,

BRITISH JOURNAL OF SURGERY (NOW INCLUDES EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF SURGERY), Issue 11 2005
D. J. Newton
Background: Most patients with critical leg ischaemia (CLI) have co-existing coronary heart disease, which is the main cause of their increased mortality rate. The aim of this study was to investigate whether any markers of endothelial function could predict death in these patients. Methods: In a cohort of 39 patients with CLI who were scheduled for lower-limb amputation, blood levels of vascular endothelial growth factor, homocysteine, endothelin (ET) 1, von Willebrand factor and vascular cell adhesion molecule 1 were measured, as well as forearm vascular responses to the endothelium-dependent vasodilator acetylcholine. Results: Levels of ET-1 were significantly higher in patients who subsequently died within 3 years than in those who were still alive (P = 0·002) and Cox proportional hazards regression analysis demonstrated that ET-1 was an independent predictor of all-cause mortality : hazard ratio 3·53 (95 per cent confidence interval (c.i.) 1·29 to 9·70; P = 0·007) and cardiovascular mortality : hazard ratio 4·15 (95 per cent c.i. 1·30 to 13·23); P = 0·014. Conclusion: ET-1 was an independent predictor of death in these patients with CLI. Copyright © 2005 British Journal of Surgery Society Ltd. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]


Mortality in epilepsy in the first 11 to 14 years after diagnosis: Multivariate analysis of a long-term, prospective, population-based cohort

ANNALS OF NEUROLOGY, Issue 3 2001
Samden D. Lhatoo MRCP
The United Kingdom National General Practice Study of Epilepsy is a prospective, population-based study of newly diagnosed epilepsy. A cohort of 792 patients has now been followed for up to 14 years (median follow-up [25th, 75th percentiles] 11.8 years, range 10.6,11.7 years), a total of 11,400 person-years. These data are sufficient for a detailed analysis of mortality in this early phase of epilepsy. Over 70% of patients in this cohort have developed lasting remission from seizures, although the mortality rate in the long term was still twice that of the general population. The standardized mortality ratio (SMR), the number of observed deaths per number of expected deaths, was 2.1 (95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.8, 2.4). Patients with acute symptomatic epilepsy (SMR 3.0; 95% CI = 2.0, 4.3), remote symptomatic epilepsy (SMR 3.7; 95% CI = 2.9, 4.6), and epilepsy due to congenital neurological deficits (SMR 25; 95% CI = 5.1, 73.1) had significantly increased long-term mortality rates, whereas patients with idiopathic epilepsy did not (SMR 1.3; 95% CI = 0.9, 1.9). This increase in mortality rate was noted particularly in the first few years after diagnosis. Multivariate Cox regression and time-dependent co-variate analyses were utilized for the first time in a prospective study of mortality in epilepsy. The former showed that patients with generalized tonic-clonic seizures had an increased risk of mortality. The hazard ratio (HR), or risk of mortality in a particular group with a particular risk factor compared to another group without that particular risk factor, was 6.2 (95% CI = 1.4, 27.7; p = 0.049). Cerebrovascular disease (HR 2.4; 95% CI = 1.7, 3.4; p < 0.0001), central nervous system tumor (HR 12.0; 95% CI = 7.9, 18.2; p < 0.0001), alcohol (HR 2.9; 95% CI = 1.5, 5.7; p = 0.004), and congenital neurological deficits (HR 10.9; 95% CI = 3.2, 36.1; p = 0.003) as causes for epilepsy and older age at index seizure (HR 1.9; 95% CI = 1.7,2.0; p < 0.0001) were also associated with significantly increased mortality rates. These hazard ratios suggest that epilepsy due to congenital neurological deficits may carry almost the same risk of mortality as epilepsy due to central nervous system tumors and that epileptic seizures subsequent to alcohol abuse may carry almost the same risk of mortality as epilepsy due to cerebrovascular disease. The occurrence of one or more seizures before the index seizure (the seizure that led to the diagnosis of epilepsy and enrolment in the study) was associated with a significantly reduced mortality rate (HR 0.57; 95% CI = 0.42, 0.76; p = 0.00001). Time-dependent co-variate analysis was used to examine the influence of ongoing factors, such as seizure recurrence, remission, and antiepileptic drug use, on mortality rates in the cohort. Seizure recurrence (HR 1.30; 95% CI = 0.84, 2.01) and antiepileptic drug treatment (HR 0.97; 95% CI = 0.67, 1.38) did not influence mortality rate. There were only 5 epilepsy-related deaths (1 each of sudden unexpected death in epilepsy, status epilepticus, burns, drowning, and cervical fracture), suggesting that death directly due to epileptic seizures is uncommon in a population-based cohort with epilepsy. Ann Neurol 2001;49:336,344 [source]