[Predictive value of left ventricular global longitudinal peak strain for the prognosis of septic patients].

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the predictive value of left ventricular global longitudinal peak strain (GLPS) for the prognosis of septic patients.

METHODS

A prospective cohort study was conducted. Patients diagnosed with sepsis and admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) of the First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University from December 2018 to November 2019 were enrolled. The patient characteristics, cardiac ultrasound parameters [left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), right ventricular ejection fraction (RVEF), four-dimensional ejection fraction (4DEF), GLPS] and cardiac biomarkers [N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP), cardiac troponin T (cTnT)] within 24 hours of ICU admission, organ support therapies, severity of illness, and prognostic indicators were documented. The differences in clinical parameters between patients with varying outcomes during ICU hospitalization were assessed. Pearson correlation analysis was employed to explore the correlation between GLPS and other cardiac systolic parameters, as well as the associations between various cardiac systolic parameters and sequential organ failure assessment (SOFA) score. Receiver operator characteristic curve (ROC curve) was drawn to analyze the predictive capacity of cardiac ultrasound parameters and cardiac biomarkers for death during ICU hospitalization in septic patients.

RESULTS

A total of 50 septic patients were enrolled, with 40 surviving and 10 dying during ICU hospitalization, resulting in a mortality of 20.0%. All patients in the death group were male. Compared with the survival group, the patients in the death group were older, had a higher prevalence of diabetes mellitus, and received continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT) more frequently, additionally, they exhibited more severe illness and had longer length of ICU stay. The levels of GLPS and cTnT in the death group were significantly elevated as compared with the survival group [GLPS: -7.1% (-8.5%, -7.0%) vs. -12.1% (-15.5%, -10.4%), cTnT (μg/L): 0.07 (0.05, 0.08) vs. 0.03 (0.02, 0.13), both P < 0.05]. However, no statistically significant difference was found in other cardiac ultrasound parameters or cardiac biomarkers between the two groups. Pearson correlation analysis revealed a negative correlation between GLPS and LVEF (r = -0.377, P = 0.014) and 4DEF (r = -0.697, P = 0.000), while no correlation was found with RVEF (r = -0.451, P = 0.069). GLPS demonstrated a positive correlation with SOFA score (r = 0.306, P = 0.033), while LVEF (r = 0.112, P = 0.481), RVEF (r = -0.134, P = 0.595), and 4DEF (r = -0.251, P = 0.259) showed no significant correlation with SOFA score. ROC curve analysis indicated that the area under the ROC curve (AUC) of GLPS for predicting death during ICU hospitalization in septic patients was higher than other cardiac systolic parameters, including LVEF, RVEF, and 4DEF, as well as cardiac biomarkers NT-proBNP and cTnT (0.737 vs. 0.628, 0.556, 0.659, 0.580 and 0.724). With an optimal cut-off value of -14.9% for GLPS, the sensitivity and negative predictive value reached to 100%.

CONCLUSIONS

GLPS < -14.9% within 24 hours of ICU admission in septic patients indicated a reduced risk of death risk during ICU hospitalization, while also correlating with the severity of organ dysfunction in this patient population.