Mediators of neutrophil lymphocyte ratio in the relationship between ondansetron pre-treatment and the mortality of ICU patients on mechanical ventilation: causal mediation analysis from the MIMIC-IV database

Effects of ondansetron exposure during ICU stay on outcomes of critically ill patients with sepsis: a cohort study

Background

Sepsis is a life-threatening disease with high morbidity and mortality, characterized by an inadequate systemic immune response to an initial stimulus. Whether the use of ondansetron (OND) during intensive care unit (ICU) stay is associated with the prognosis of sepsis patients remains unclear.

Methods

Critically ill patients with sepsis were extracted from the Medical Information Mart for Intensive Care IV (MIMIC-IV) database. Multivariate logistic regression and Cox regression analyses were used to explore the association between OND use and clinical outcomes after adjusting for confounders. Kaplan-Meier survival curve was used for survival analysis. Propensity score matching (PSM) and subgroup analysis were performed to further confirm the results.

Results

The OND-medication group showed reduced in-hospital mortality, 28-day and 90-day mortalities. The OR for in-hospital mortality was 0.80 (0.64-0.99) and HRs for 28-day mortality and 90-day mortality were 0.77 (0.64-0.92) and 0.83 (0.70-0.98), respectively. After PSM, the clinical outcomes remained consistent. In-hospital mortality was lower in the OND-medication group (28.1% vs. 35.8%, P= 0.044), as well as 28-day mortality (23.4% vs. 32.1%, P=0.022) and 90-day mortality (27.4% vs. 35.8%, P=0.035). The protective effect of OND in sepsis patients was relatively robust, independent of age, septic shock, vasopressin and mechanical ventilation. Additionally, the OND users had longer lengths of stay in ICU (6.9(3.1-13.2) vs. 5.1(2.5-11.0), P = 0.026) while no statistical differences were found in lengths of stay in hospital (P = 0.333).

Conclusion

OND exposure might be associated with lower in-hospital, 28-day, and 90-day mortality rates in critically ill patients with sepsis. This study indicated that OND might help improve the prognosis of patients with sepsis.

Early Postoperative Ondansetron Exposure is Associated with Reduced 90-Day Mortality in Patients Undergoing Cardiac Surgery

Background

Ondansetron is a widely used anti-emetic for the prevention and treatment of nausea and vomiting for patients in critical care. Recent retrospective cohort studies suggest the potential beneficial effects of ondansetron in critically ill patients. In this study, we investigate the impact of ondansetron use on patient outcomes after cardiac surgery.

Material and Methods

The MIMIC-III database was used to identify two types of cardiac surgical patients: those who were administered early ondansetron and those who were not given this early medication in the first 48 h in the postoperative period. Multivariable logistic regression was used to investigate the effect of ondansetron exposure on 90-day mortality, acute kidney injury, and malignant ventricular arrhythmias. Sensitivity analyses utilizing the inverse probability of treatment weighting and covariate balancing propensity score models were conducted to test the robustness of our findings.

Results

A total of 12.4% of patients received ondansetron. Ondansetron use was associated with a lower risk of 90-day mortality in the multivariable logistic regression model (OR: 0.31, 95% CI: 0.13 to 0.72; P = 0.006) and sensitivity analyses. Additionally, ondansetron exposure was associated with less postoperative acute kidney injury (OR: 0.82, 95%CI: 0.69 to 0.96; P = 0.017) but did not increase the risk of postoperative malignant ventricular arrhythmias (OR: 0.38, 95%CI: 0.09 to 1.16; P = 0.191).

Conclusions

In a population of cardiac surgical patients, early postoperative use of ondansetron appears to be associated with decreased 90-day mortality and acute kidney injury.