Long-Term Outcome of Severe Metabolic Acidemia in ICU Patients, a BICAR-ICU Trial Post Hoc Analysis

Objectives: Long-term prognosis of ICU survivors is a major issue. Severe acidemia upon ICU admission is associated with very high short-term mortality. Since the long-term prognosis of these patients is unknown, we aimed to determine the long-term health-related quality of life and survival of these patients.

Design: Post hoc analysis of a multicenter, randomized, controlled trial.

Setting: Twenty-six French ICUs.

Patients: Day 28 critically ill survivors admitted with severe acidemia and enrolled in the BICAR-ICU trial.

Intervention: Sodium bicarbonate versus no sodium bicarbonate infusion according to the randomization group.

Measurements and main results: The primary outcome was health-related quality of life (HRQoL) measured with the 36-item Short Form Health Survey and the EuroQol 5-D questionnaires. Secondary outcomes were mortality, end-stage renal disease treated with renal replacement therapy or renal transplantation, place of residence, professional status, and ICU readmission. HRQoL was reduced with no significant difference between the two groups. HRQoL was reduced particularly in the role-physical health domain (64/100 ± 41 in the control group and 49/100 ± 43 in the bicarbonate group, p = 0.28), but it was conserved in the emotional domains (96/100 ± 19 in the control group and 86/100 ± 34 in the bicarbonate group, p = 0.44). Forty percent of the survivors described moderate to severe problems walking, and half of the survivors described moderate to severe problems dealing with usual activities. Moderate to severe anxiety or depression symptoms were present in one third of the survivors. Compared with the French general population, HRQoL was decreased in the survivors mostly in the physical domains. The 5-year overall survival rate was 30% with no significant difference between groups.

Conclusions: Long-term HRQoL was decreased in both the control and the sodium bicarbonate groups of the BICAR-ICU trial and was lower than the general population, especially in the physical domains.