Objective: To analyze the clinical characteristics of septic shock caused by upper and lower gastrointestinal perforation.
Methods: Clinical data of patients with septic shock due to gastrointestinal perforation admitted to the department of critical care medicine of the Affiliated Hospital of Guizhou Medical University from January 2018 to December 2019 were analyzed retrospectively. The general information; procalcitonin (PCT), acute physiology and chronic health evaluation II (APACHE II) and sequential organ failure assessment (SOFA) scores during the first 24 hours in intensive care unit (ICU); results of ascites culture during the first 72 hours in ICU; the maximum dosage and total time of norepinephrine (NE) in ICU; mechanical ventilation time, the length of ICU stay, occurrence of acute kidney injury (AKI), continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT) and 28-day mortality were collected. The patients were divided into upper gastrointestinal tract group (stomach and duodenum) and lower gastrointestinal tract group (jejunum, ileum, appendix, colon and rectum), with a boundary of Treitz. The clinical features between the two groups were compared.
Results: There were 33 patients in the upper gastrointestinal tract group and 30 patients in the lower gastrointestinal tract group. There was no significant difference in gender and age between the two groups. The main pathogens in the ascites cultures in the upper gastrointestinal tract group were Candida albicans (45.5%), Enterococcus faecalis (18.2%) and Escherichia coli (18.2%). Escherichia coli (46.2%) and Enterococcus faecalis (30.8%) were the main pathogens in the lower gastrointestinal tract group. There were significant differences in PCT, the length of ICU stay, mechanical ventilation time, the maximum dosage and total time of NE between the upper gastrointestinal tract group and lower gastrointestinal tract group [PCT (μg/L): 17.69 (3.83, 26.62) vs. 32.82 (4.21, 100.00), the length of ICU stay (hours): 149.0 (102.5, 302.0) vs. 115.5 (30.8, 214.5), mechanical ventilation time (hours): 106.0 (41.5, 183.0) vs. 57.5 (25.0, 122.3), the maximum dosage of NE (μg×kg-1×min-1): 1.2 (0.5, 2.0) vs. 0.7 (0.5, 1.2), the total time of NE (hours): 72.0 (21.0, 145.0) vs. 26.5 (18.0, 80.5), all P < 0.05], while there was no statistically differences in APACHE II or SOFA scores [APACHE II: 30.0 (24.5, 35.0) vs. 28.0 (25.0, 33.5), SOFA: 10.67±4.14 vs. 9.50±3.33, both P > 0.05]. Compared with the lower gastrointestinal tract group, patients in the upper gastrointestinal tract group were more likely to have AKI (78.8% vs. 53.3%, P < 0.05) and require CRRT (39.4% vs. 16.7%, P < 0.05), but there was no significant difference in the 28-day mortality (39.4% vs. 43.3%, P > 0.05).
Conclusions: The clinical characteristics of septic shock caused by upper and lower gastrointestinal perforation are not the same. Patients with septic shock caused by upper gastrointestinal perforation are more likely to suffer from fungal infection, with more severe shock, more likely to have AKI and require CRRT, and significantly longer mechanical ventilation and the length of ICU stay. While patients with septic shock caused by lower gastrointestinal perforation showed higher PCT.