Critically ill patients are occasionally associated with an abrupt decline in renal function secondary to their primary diagnosis. The effect and impact of haemodialysis (HD) on insulin kinetics and endogenous insulin secretion in critically ill patients remains unclear. This study investigates the insulin kinetics of patients with severe acute kidney injury (AKI) who required HD treatment and glycaemic control (GC). Evidence shows that tight GC benefits the onset and progression of renal involvement in precocious phases of diabetic nephropathy for type 2 diabetes. The main objective of GC is to reduce hyperglycaemia while determining insulin sensitivity. Insulin sensitivity (S I ) is defined as the body response to the effects of insulin by lowering blood glucose levels. Particularly, this study used S I to track changes in insulin levels during HD therapy. Model-based insulin sensitivity profiles were identified for 51 critically ill patients with severe AKI on specialized relative insulin nutrition titration GC during intervals on HD (OFF/ON) and after HD (ON/OFF). The metabolic effects of HD were observed through changes in S I over the ON/OFF and OFF/ON transitions. Changes in model-based S I at the OFF/ON and ON/OFF transitions indicate changes in endogenous insulin secretion and/or changes in effective insulin clearance. Patients exhibited a median reduction of -29 % (interquartile range (IQR): [-58, 6 %], p = 0.02) in measured S I after the OFF/ON dialysis transition, and a median increase of +9 % (IQR -15 to 28 %, p = 0.7) after the ON/OFF transition. Almost 90 % of patients exhibited decreased S I at the OFF/ON transition, and 55 % exhibited increased S I at the ON/OFF transition. Results indicate that HD commencement has a significant effect on insulin pharmacokinetics at a cohort and per-patient level. These changes in metabolic behaviour are most likely caused by changes in insulin clearance or/and endogenous insulin secretion.
Mechanical ventilation (MV) provides respiratory support for critically ill patients in the intensive care unit (ICU). Waveform data output by the ventilator provides valuable physiological and diagnostic information. However, existing systems do not provide full access to this information nor allow for real-time, non-invasive data collection. Therefore, large amounts of data are lost and analysis is limited to short samples of breathing cycles. This study presents a data acquisition device for acquiring and monitoring patient ventilation waveform data. Acquired data can be exported to other systems, allowing users to further analyse data and develop further clinically useful parameters. These parameters, together with other ventilatory information, can help personalise and guide MV treatment. The device is designed to be easily replicable, low-cost, and scalable according to the number of patient beds. Validation was carried out by assessing system performance and stability over prolonged periods of 7 days of continuous use. The device provides a platform for future integration of machine-learning or model-based modules, potentially allowing real-time, proactive, patient-specific MV guidance and decision support to improve the quality and productivity of care and outcomes.