Predictors of mortality in adults with Sickle cell disease admitted to intensive care unit in Bahrain

Objective: Sickle cell disease (SCD) is one of the most common genetic blood disorders in Bahrain. However, there is a paucity of data regarding the clinical presentation of SCD patients who require ICU admission. This study aimed to describe the epidemiological data of SCD patients admitted to the ICU and to identify predictors of mortality in order to help intensivists identify patients at most risk. Method: This study used a retrospective, descriptive, and correlational design. Records of 210 SCD patients admitted to the ICU in Salmaniya Medical Complex (SMC) were reviewed. Results: 210 patient with SCD were admitted to ICU during study period. The main reason for ICU admission was acute chest syndrome. The mortality rate of SCD patients in the ICU was 12.7%. The four significant predictors of mortality were age, number of previous hospitalizations, length of stay, and need of renal replacement therapy. Non-survivors were older than survivors (M = 38.6 vs. M = 30.3 years, U = 1685, z = -2.2, P = 0.025), were less frequently hospitalized (M = 19 vs. M = 46 times, U = 1274, z = -3.7, P = 0.000), had shorter lengths of stay in the ICU (M = 3.1 vs. M = 5.5 days, U = 1145, z = -4, P = 0.000), and more likely to require renal replacement therapy the p = 0.0297 than the survivors. The combined effect of these predictors was modelled with cox regression and found to be statistically significant. Gender, presence of comorbid conditions, level of hemoglobin on admission, and need for blood transfusions were not found to be predictors for mortality. Conclusion: Acute chest syndrome was the main reason for SCD patients to be admitted to the ICU. Older age, less frequent hospitalization, shorter stays in the ICU, and the need for renal replacement therapy were found to be indicators of high mortality rate SCD patients. (c) 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.