APHACHE Score as a Predictive Indices for Weanability from Mechanical Ventilation

Abstract

Objective: To determine the significance of acute physiology and chronic health evaluation (APACHE) score as an important parameter of weaning outcome for mechanical ventilation.

Design: prospective, observational.

Setting: The medical ICU of a modernized private hospital, Dhaka.

Method: The study was carried out during the period of 2008 to 2009 in a specialized private hospital Dhaka. Critical care physicians were asked to filled up the data sheets having detail problem of the patients including the APACHE II score. The APACHE II score is divided into three steps High score>25, Medium score 20-24 and Low score < 20. The clinicians were suggested to predict whether it would take < 3 days or 4to 7days or >8days to wean each patients from mechanical ventilation. The cause of respiratory failure and total duration of weaning were recorded. The significance was set at p<.05.

Result: Total number of patients included in this study were 40. Male were 22 (55%) and female were 18 (45%), the mean age of the patients were 51.1±13.9. The most common cause of respiratory failure were COPD 11(24.5%) and next common were pneumonia and ARDS due to sepsis 8 (20%) each. Among the studied population 20 (50%) having low APACHE score (<20), 12 (30%) were medium score (20-24) and 8 (20%) patients were high score (>25). Total 25 (62.5%) of the patients were successfully weaned from mechanical ventilation, 10 (25%) of the patient died and 5 (12.5%) of the patent were shifted to other low cost hospital. The successfully weaned groups 17 (68%) had lower APACHE II score than the unsuccessfully (failure) group which were statistically significant ÷2 =.8546, df =2, p-value >.005.

Conclusions: The overall severity of illness as assessed by APACHE II score correlates better with weaning outcome.

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/bccj.v1i1.14360

Bangladesh Crit Care J March 2013; 1: 18-22