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Observational Study
. 2024 Jun 4;14(1):12776.
doi: 10.1038/s41598-024-63769-3.

Thigh muscle mass evaluated by point-of-care ultrasound is associated with short-term mortality in patients with sepsis in the emergency department

Sejoong Ahn  1 , Bo-Yeong Jin  2 , Jong-Hak Park  1 , Sungjin Kim  1 , Sukyo Lee  1 , Sungwoo Moon  1 , Hanjin Cho  3
Affiliations
Observational Study

Thigh muscle mass evaluated by point-of-care ultrasound is associated with short-term mortality in patients with sepsis in the emergency department

Sejoong Ahn et al. Sci Rep. .

Abstract

Muscle mass depletion is associated with mortality and morbidity in various conditions including sepsis. However, few studies have evaluated muscle mass using point-of-care ultrasound in patients with sepsis. This study aimed to evaluate the association between thigh muscle mass, evaluated using point-of-care ultrasound with panoramic view in patients with sepsis in the emergency department, and mortality. From March 2021 to October 2022, this prospective observational study used sepsis registry. Adult patients who were diagnosed with sepsis at the emergency department and who underwent point-of-care ultrasounds for lower extremities were included. The thigh muscle mass was evaluated by the cross-sectional area of the quadriceps femoris (CSA-QF) on point-of-care ultrasound using panoramic view. The primary outcome was 28 day mortality. Multivariable Cox proportional hazard model was performed. Of 112 included patients with sepsis, mean CSA-QF was significantly lower in the non-surviving group than surviving group (49.6 [34.3-56.5] vs. 63.2 [46.9-79.6] cm2, p = 0.002). Each cm2 increase of mean CSA-QF was independently associated with decreased 28 day mortality (adjusted hazard ratio 0.961, 95% CI 0.928-0.995, p = 0.026) after adjustment for potential confounders. The result of other measurements of CSA-QF were similar. The muscle mass of the quadriceps femoris evaluated using point-of-care ultrasound with panoramic view was associated with mortality in patients with sepsis. It might be a promising tool for determining risk factors for mortality in sepsis patients in the early stages of emergency department.

Keywords: Emergency department; Muscle; Quadriceps femoris; Sepsis; Sonography; Survival.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Flow diagram of the study population.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Kaplan–Meier curve for 28 day mortality according to optimal cutoff of mean CSA-QF. CSA-QF cross sectional area of quadriceps femoris.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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