Study design and patients
In this retrospective observational study, we used prospectively collected data derived from adult comatose OHCA survivors treated with TTM at Chungnam National University Hospital in Daejeon, Republic of Korea, between April 2018 and December 2019. The Institutional Review Board of Chungnam National University Hospital approved this study (CNUH-2020-04-103). This study included 14 patients from our previous studies on severe BBB disruption [6].
We included adult (≥ 18 years) OHCA survivors, who were unconscious (Glasgow Coma Scale score, ≤ 8) after ROSC. They had been treated with TTM using an Arctic Sun® system (Energy Transfer Pads™; Medivance Corp, Louisville, CO, USA). We excluded patients (1) who had experienced a traumatic CA or an interrupted TTM owing to transfer or death, (2) who were ineligible for lumbar puncture (LP), (3) who were receiving extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, (4) who had no next of kin to provide consent for an LP procedure, and (5) whose next of kin did not consent to further treatment. The ineligibility for LP was determined if the brain computed tomography showed severe cerebral edema, obliteration of the basal cisterns, an occult intracranial mass lesion, or coagulopathy with a platelet count < 40 × 103/mL or international normalized ratio > 1.5.
Targeted temperature management
Comatose OHCA survivors underwent TTM in accordance with our previously published TTM protocols [7]. A target temperature of 33°C was maintained for 24 h using an Arctic Sun® feedback-controlled surface cooling device. Upon completion of the TTM maintenance period, the patients were rewarmed to 37°C at a rate of 0.25°C/h, and the temperature was monitored using a bladder temperature probe.
All patients received sedatives, and a neuromuscular blocking agent was used during TTM. Midazolam (0.05 mg/kg intravenous bolus, followed by a titrated intravenous continuous infusion between 0.05 and 0.2 mg/kg/h) and cisatracurium (0.15 mg/kg intravenous bolus, followed by an infusion up to 5 μg/kg/min) were administered to sedate the patient and to control shivering, respectively. Anesthetic depth was monitored using ADMS™ (Anesthetic Depth Monitor for Sedation, Unimedics Co., Ltd., Seoul, Republic of Korea). An electroencephalography was performed if persistent deterioration in a patient’s consciousness level, involuntary movements, or seizures were observed. In case of evidence of electrographic seizures or clinical diagnosis of seizures, we administered an antiepileptic medication, namely, levetiracetam (loading dose, 2 g bolus, intravenously; maintenance dose, 1 g bolus, twice daily, intravenously). All other aspects of patient management involved standard intensive care processes, carried out in accordance with our institutional intensive care unit protocol.
Data collection
We obtained data on the following parameters from hospital records: age, sex, medical history (hypertension, coronary artery disease, diabetes mellitus), witnessed collapse, bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), first monitored rhythm, etiology of CA, time from collapse to CPR (no flow time), time from CPR to ROSC (low flow time), time from ROSC to obtaining ICP via LP (ICP time), and sequential organ failure assessment (SOFA) score within the first 24 h after admission. We assessed the neurological outcomes at three months after OHCA via phone interview, using the cerebral performance category (CPC) scale, as follows: CPC 1, good performance; CPC 2, moderate disability; CPC 3, severe disability; CPC 4, vegetative state; or CPC 5, brain death or death [8, 9].
Measurement of albumin quotient and scoring system
A lumbar catheter insertion was performed using the HermeticTM lumbar catheter accessory kit (Integra Neurosciences, Plainsboro, NJ, USA) with the patient lying in a lateral decubitus position with hips and knees flexed. CSF albumin and serum albumin samples were obtained at the same time immediately (day 1), and at 24 h (day 2), 48 h (day 3), and 72 h (day 4) after ROSC. The albumin quotient (QA) was calculated using the following formula:
albumin quotient (QA) = [albuminCSF] / [albuminserum]
The degree of BBB disruption was defined as follows: 0.07 ≥ QA (normal), 0.01 ≥ QA > 0.007 (mild), 0.02 ≥ QA > 0.01 (moderate), and QA > 0.02 (severe). Based on our previous studies, the scoring system weighted the degree of BBB disruption and gave it 0 (normal), 1 (mild), 4 (moderate), and 9 (severe) points. For example, if normal disruption occurred on day 1, mild disruption on day 2, moderate disruption on day 3, and severe disruption on day 4, then the weighted score would be 0 + 1 + 4 + 9 = 14 points.
Statistical analysis
We described categorical variables as frequencies and percentages and continuous variables as median values with interquartile ranges. We compared categorical variables between groups using the χ2 test with continuity correction in 2 × 2 tables. We compared continuous variables between groups using the Mann–Whitney U test, since all continuous variables showed non-normal distribution. At each time point, the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were plotted and corresponding areas under the curve (AUC) were determined to evaluate the predictive performance of BBB disruption on poor neurological outcome (CPC 3–5). The cutoff value for predicting poor neurological outcomes after six months post-OHCA was determined using the Youden index. Data were analyzed using SPSS software version 18 (SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL, USA). The ROC curves were calculated using MedCalc version 15.2.2 (MedCalc Software, Mariakerke, Belgium). The significance level was set to P < 0.05.