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Haloperidol for Delirium in Adult Critically Ill Patients

Phase 3
Terminated
Conditions
Critical Illness
Intensive Care Psychosis
Cognitive Decline
Cognitive Impairment
Delirium
Interventions
Drug: Placebo
Registration Number
NCT03628391
Lead Sponsor
Erasmus Medical Center
Brief Summary

The EuRIDICE trial will study whether haloperidol as a first line treatment for ICU delirium reduces delirium duration (and severity). Adverse outcomes typically associated with delirium will also be studied and include long term cognition, functional outcome and quality of life. Further, patient and family experiences and cost-effectiveness will be assessed. Finally, safety concerns associated with the use of haloperidol in this vulnerable population will be studied.

Detailed Description

BACKGROUND. Although widely used, the efficacy and safety of haloperidol for delirium in critically ill adults remain unclear. A randomised controlled trial is warranted to study the effect of haloperidol on delirium or coma, long-term outcomes, safety concerns, and cost-effectiveness.

SUMMARY.

The investigators will perform a multi-center, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial to evaluate the use of haloperidol for delirium treatment in 742 critically ill adults with delirium. Days spent without delirium- or coma in the first 14 days after randomisation is the primary outcome. Study drug will be initiated at 2.5mg IV q8h and increased after 24 hours to 5mg IV q8h if delirium persists. Study drug dose will be tapered when delirium has resolved during 24 hours. All patients will be managed with a standardized pain, agitation and delirium protocol. Standard operating procedures for agitation (analgesia titration, alpha2 agonists) and hallucination management (atypical antipsychotics) will be implemented to accommodate possible imbalances of these symptoms in both treatment arms. Open-label haloperidol administration is discouraged during the trial. The sample size provides a power of 90% to detect statistically significant results (p\<.05) and a true treatment difference of one day for the primary outcome between trial arms.

This trial is expected to answer the clinically relevant question whether haloperidol still deserves a place in ICU delirium management. The primary outcome (delirium- and coma-free days) will be related to the secondary outcomes cognitive dysfunction, functional and psychological outcomes and patient- and family experiences. An extensive cost-effectiveness analysis will be done. Mortality at one year and safety concerns of haloperidol (QTc prolongation on EKG and rigidity) will be assessed as secondary endpoints. In conclusion, this large multicentre trial will assess efficacy and safety of haloperidol for ICU delirium.

Recruitment & Eligibility

Status
TERMINATED
Sex
All
Target Recruitment
142
Inclusion Criteria

Not provided

Exclusion Criteria

Not provided

Study & Design

Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Study Design
PARALLEL
Arm && Interventions
GroupInterventionDescription
placeboPlacebostudy drug will be titrated based on delirium, diagnosed with a validated screening instrument (CAM-ICU or ICDSC), starting with 2.5mg IV q8h and titrated to a maximum of 5mg IV q8h. Agitation and hallucinations will be managed according to a pre-specified protocol in both treatment arms. First the study drug will be increased when agitation or delirium remain present. Further options include mainly the use of alfa-2 agonists (agitation) or atypical antipsychotic drugs (hallucinations).
haloperidolHaloperidolstudy drug will be titrated based on delirium, diagnosed with a validated screening instrument (CAM-ICU or ICDSC), starting with 2.5mg IV q8h and titrated to a maximum of 5mg IV q8h. Agitation and hallucinations will be managed according to a pre-specified protocol in both treatment arms. First the study drug will be increased when agitation or delirium remain present. Further options include mainly the use of alfa-2 agonists (agitation) or atypical antipsychotic drugs (hallucinations).
Primary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
delirium- and coma-free dayswithin the first 14 days after randomisation

days without brain dysfunction (=delirium OR coma) while at the ICU

Secondary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Cognitive deterioration: Cognitive flexibility3 and 12 months

Cognitive flexibility, one of the executive funcions, will be assessed with the Trialmaking tests A and B. The total amount of seconds needed to finish each test will be reported, with less seconds needed representing better cognitive flexibility.

mortality28 days and 1 year

mortality

Patients' and family-members' experiences related to deliriumat discharge from hospital (up to a maximum of 12 months after randomisation = end of follow-up period) and 3 months after randomisation

Delirium recall and distress related to the delirium episode will be assessed with the Delirium Experience Questionnaire (DEQ). Scores will represent whether patients remember their delirium episode. In addition, a score representing delirium-related distress levels (range: 0-4, with higher values representing more distress) will be reported for both patients and family-members.

Cognitive deterioration: Semantic fluency3 and 12 months

Semantic fluency will be tested with the Semantic Category Fluency Test. The amount of animals given within a time of 60 seconds will represent the score.

length of stay at ICUdays of ICU stay (time in days from ICU admission until ICU discharge). Assessed up to a maximum of 12 months after randomisation (end of follow-up period).

length of stay at ICU (days)

Adverse drug associated events: prolonged QTc by EKGwhile on study drug treatment during study period at ICU (up to 14 days after randomisation)

prolonged QTc by EKG (ms)

Cognitive deterioration: Global cognitive functioning3 and 12 months

Global cognitive functioning as assessed with the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MOCA). Total score will be reported, with a range of 0-30 (higher values representing better cognitive functioning).

Cognitive deterioration: Working memory3 and 12 months

Working memory will be assessed using the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale - Third Edition (WAIS-III). Subscales will be reported for both digit span under forward and backward recall conditions. In addition, a total score will be reported, which equals the sum of both separate digit spans.

Cognitive deterioration: Word retrieval3 and 12 months

Word retrieval is tested with the Boston Naming Test (30-item version). The total score (range: 0-30) represents the amount of correct answered drawings.

Anxiety and depression3 and 12 months

Anxiety and depression will be assessed with the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS). Two subscales will be reported, one for anxiety symptoms (range: 0-21) and one for depression symptoms (range: 0-21). Higher values represent a worse outcome. A subscore \>8 indicates anxiety or depression, respectively.

Adverse drug associated events: ventricular arrhythmia'sduring study period at ICU (up to 14 days after randomisation)

ventricular arrhythmia's including torsade de pointes

Functional outcome3 and 12 months

Health-related quality of life will be assessed with the Short Form-35 (SF-36). Nine subscales will be reported on a 0 - 100 scale: physical functioning, role functioning - physical, bodily pain, general health, vitality, social functioning, role functioning - emotional, mental health and reported health transition. Higher values represent a better health-related quality of life.

Adverse drug associated events: muscle rigidity and other associated movements disorderswhile on study drug treatment during study period at ICU (up to 14 days after randomisation)

muscle rigidity and other associated movements disorders \[measured with the Simpson Angus Scale\]

Cognitive deterioration: Verbal learning and memory3 and 12 months

Auditory-verbal learning and memory will be assessed with the Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test. Three subscores will be reported: total correct words in 5 trials (range: 0 -75), total correct words after delay (range: 0-15) and total correct words at recognition (range: 0-30).

Patients' memories related to their ICU stayat discharge from hospital (up to a maximum of 12 months after randomisation = end of follow-up period) and 3 months after randomisation

Patients' memories for their ICU stay will be evaluated with the ICU Memory Tool (ICU-MT). Subscores will be reported for factual memories (range: 0-11), delusion memories (range: 0-6) and memories of feelings (range: 0-4).

Posttraumatic stress syndromeat 3 months after randomisation

Posttraumatic stress symptoms in patients and families will be assessed with the Impact of Event Scale - Revised (IES-R). A mean total IES-R score will be reported (range: 0-4), with posttraumatic stress disorder defined as a mean IES-R score ≥ 1.6. In addition, subscores will be reported for intrusion, avoidance and hyperarousal (range: 0-4).

Caregiver Strainat 3 months after randomisation

The strain experienced by family-members or relatives will be assessed with the Caregiver Strain Index. A total score (range: 0-13) will be reported, with higher values representing higher experienced strain.

Trial Locations

Locations (8)

Radboudumc

🇳🇱

Nijmegen, Netherlands

ErasmusMC

🇳🇱

Rotterdam, Netherlands

Ikazia Hospital

🇳🇱

Rotterdam, Netherlands

Maasstad Hospital

🇳🇱

Rotterdam, Netherlands

Albert Schweitzer Hospital

🇳🇱

Dordrecht, Netherlands

Franciscus Gasthuis (Hospital)

🇳🇱

Rotterdam, Netherlands

Jeroen Bosch ziekenhuis

🇳🇱

's-Hertogenbosch, Netherlands

IJsselland Hospital

🇳🇱

Capelle aan den IJssel, Netherlands

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