MedPath

AOrtic Surgery: Systemic Inflammatory Response Versus Sepsis

Recruiting
Conditions
Aortic Diseases
Infections
Immunological Abnormality
Systemic Inflammatory Response Syndrome
Thoracic Aortic Aneurysm
Interventions
Diagnostic Test: Blood sample test
Procedure: Thoracic Aortic Surgery
Registration Number
NCT06028789
Lead Sponsor
University Hospital Hradec Kralove
Brief Summary

The goal of the prospective observational study is to evaluate the immunological background of inflammatory response often seen after open thoracic aortic surgery. Patients scheduled for this type of procedure will undergo a series of blood testing (preoperatively, and several times postoperatively). The blood samples will be used for a wide scale of immunological tests to better evaluate potential differential markers against infection. A control group will include patients with active infective endocarditis (preoperatively).

The main question is if there is a biomarker able to determine a difference between sterile systemic inflammation and infection after thoracic aortic surgery. The second question is if there is a difference in dynamics of evaluated biomarkers between sterile postoperative inflammation and active endocarditis.

Detailed Description

It has been observed in daily clinical practice that patients after thoracic aortic replacement (of any extent, of any reason) often develop a set of specific symptoms. Those include fever, weakness and prolonged rise of standard laboratory parameters of inflammation (CRP and leucocyte level) in absence of infection. Those symptoms may, but do not have to, coincide with typical signs of postcardiotomy syndrome, rather characteristic by pericardial / pleural effusion and indifferent chest pain. They rather resemble a so called "postimplantation" syndrome, described after endovascular aortic repair. As a reaction to foreign vascular graft material, pro-inflammatory cytokines are being released, thus leading to flu-like symptoms in absence of true infection. Those occur in the short-term postoperatively, usually in the first 2 weeks after the surgery.

Patients after thoracic aortic surgery represent a high-risk patient cohort vulnerable to infections of any kind, mostly respiratory, urinary, wound infections, and, last but not least, early valve endocarditis / endoaortitis being the most feared of them. While clinicians (and patients) are often afraid of the abovementioned complications, the patients are forced to undergo complex diagnostic process including repeated echocardiography, collection of microbiology cultures and blood samples, chest computer tomography imaging with extensive radiation burden. The prolonged broad-spectrum empiric antibiotic treatment is often in place together with prolonged hospital stay and limited patient satisfaction. The question of starting the immunosuppressive treatment is often weighed against the potential aggravation of infection with eventual fatal consequences.

In absence of a specific biomarker to distinguish between the sterile systemic inflammation and infection, the clinicians must rely on complex evaluation of patient symptoms, clinical examination, imaging modalities, standard laboratory measures of inflammation and microbiology cultures (with some delay). However, in the era of molecular biology and extensive progress in immunology research, there has been a long row of potential biomarkers able to specify the etiology of inflammatory process significantly sooner.

The potential biomarkers of inflammation suitable for this issue are mentioned in detail further. Conventional biomarkers include CRP, leukocyte count, differential blood count, recently also procalcitonin (PCT), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF- α) and interleukin-6 (IL-6). Hematology tests have reported novel early markers of sepsis, e.g. mean neutrophil volume or neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio. Novel serology markers (mostly assessed by ELISA) include soluble triggering receptor expressed on myeloid cell-1 (sTREM-1), presepsin, serum amyloid-A, pentraxin 3, hemoxygenase-1 (HO-1), soluble CD64 (sCD64), soluble CD163 (sCD163), high mobility group box-1 (HMGB-1), lipopolysaccharide-binding protein (LBP) and others. Newly, the molecules expressed on the surface of circulating blood cells may be examined using flow cytometry: CD64 on polymorphonuclears (PMN CD64 index) or monocytes, CD163, CD167, HLA-DR etc. Cell function assays which test ability of blood cells to respond to microbial stimuli (represented by LPS, flagellin, etc.) may reveal changes in soluble biomarkers, such as IL-18 or IFN-γ that reflect nature of inflammation in patients.

Recently, several scoring systems have emerged combining panels of various biomarkers. There is a promising evidence for a composite of serum and cell-expressed parameters, called "Bioscore", including procalcitonin, sTREM-1 and PMN CD64 index. A composite of 5 hematological parameters has proven to be a reliable marker of early sepsis, being called intensive care infection score (ICIS). Another scoring systems have been developed by group of Kofoed et al. Nevertheless, most of these scoring systems have been tested in the settings of unstable patients in the intensive care unit. The issue of inflammatory response described above is mostly a matter of stable patients in the standard ward who develop signs of undetermined inflammation. Eventual diagnostic modalities in these settings have been only scarcely evaluated before. The topic of inflammatory response after aortic surgery (IRAS) has not been studied in the literature yet.

Recruitment & Eligibility

Status
RECRUITING
Sex
All
Target Recruitment
60
Inclusion Criteria

Not provided

Exclusion Criteria

Not provided

Study & Design

Study Type
OBSERVATIONAL
Study Design
Not specified
Arm && Interventions
GroupInterventionDescription
Study groupBlood sample testPatients undergoing elective thoracic aortic surgery.
Study groupThoracic Aortic SurgeryPatients undergoing elective thoracic aortic surgery.
Control groupBlood sample testPatients admitted to our institution with active infectious endocarditis.
Primary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Expression of CD64 on granulocytesAfter completion of the study - until the end of 2023

A statistically significant difference in absolute values or dynamics of the expression of CD64 on granulocytes between the study groups to distinguish between the specified clinical syndromes. Expression on monocytes will be also assessed.

Serum concentration of sCD64After completion of the study - until the end of 2023

A statistically significant difference in absolute value or dynamics of serum concentrations of sCD64 between the study groups to help distinguish between the specified clinical syndromes.

Cell function assay of INF-γAfter completion of the study - until the end of 2023

A significant difference in the outcomes of cell function assay of INF-γ between the study groups to distinguish between the specified clinical syndromes.

Secondary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Serum concentration of sTREM-1After completion of the study - until the end of 2023

A statistically significant difference in absolute value or dynamics of serum concentrations of sTREM-1 between the study groups to help distinguish between the specified clinical syndromes.

Serum concentration of calprotectinAfter completion of the study - until the end of 2023

A statistically significant difference in absolute value or dynamics of serum concentrations of calprotectin between the study groups to help distinguish between the specified clinical syndromes.

Expression of CD-14 on granulocytesAfter completion of the study - until the end of 2023

A statistically significant difference in absolute values or dynamics of the expression of CD-14 on granulocytes between the study groups to distinguish between the specified clinical syndromes. Expression on monocytes will be also assessed.

Expression of CD-40 on granulocytesAfter completion of the study - until the end of 2023

A statistically significant difference in absolute values or dynamics of the expression of CD-40 on granulocytes between the study groups to distinguish between the specified clinical syndromes. Expression on monocytes will be also assessed.

Expression of CD-163 on granulocytesAfter completion of the study - until the end of 2023

A statistically significant difference in absolute values or dynamics of the expression of CD-163 on granulocytes between the study groups to distinguish between the specified clinical syndromes. Expression on monocytes will be also assessed.

Cell function assay of IL-18After completion of the study - until the end of 2023

A significant difference in the outcomes of cell function assay of IL-18 between the study groups to distinguish between the specified clinical syndromes.

Serum concentration of pentraxin 3After completion of the study - until the end of 2023

A statistically significant difference in absolute value or dynamics of serum concentrations of pentraxin 3 between the study groups to help distinguish between the specified clinical syndromes.

Expression of CD-16 on granulocytesAfter completion of the study - until the end of 2023

A statistically significant difference in absolute values or dynamics of the expression of CD-16 on granulocytes between the study groups to distinguish between the specified clinical syndromes. Expression on monocytes will be also assessed.

Expression of CD-45 on granulocytesAfter completion of the study - until the end of 2023

A statistically significant difference in absolute values or dynamics of the expression of CD-45 on granulocytes between the study groups to distinguish between the specified clinical syndromes. Expression on monocytes will be also assessed.

ICIS scoreAfter completion of the study - until the end of 2023

A significant difference in the absolute values or dynamics of ICIS (intensive care infection score) score value between the study groups.

Expression of HLA-DR on granulocytesAfter completion of the study - until the end of 2023

A statistically significant difference in absolute values or dynamics of the expression of HLA-DR on granulocytes between the study groups to distinguish between the specified clinical syndromes. Expression on monocytes will be also assessed.

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

University Hospital Hradec Králové

🇨🇿

Hradec Králové, Královehradecký Kraj, Czechia

© Copyright 2025. All Rights Reserved by MedPath