Thereafter, a case-matched comparison was performed by using statistical methods described in a previous publication [8]. In brief, this involved matching each tracheostomy http://www.selleckchem.com/products/Vandetanib.html patient with a single translaryngeal intubated patient who had a similar propensity score (within 0.1 on a scale from 0 to 1). When more than one matched patient was identified for a given case, the patient with the least number of missing laboratory-data values was selected as the matched patient. Matched analysis, mixed model, or general estimation equations were used for case match study comparisons. Several continuous variables were categorized by median value (albumin and BUN) or a clinically meaningful cut-off point (APACHE II score) for logistic regression. Data were analyzed by using SAS 9.0 statistical software (SAS Institute Inc.
, Cary, NC) and a value of P < 0.05 was considered statistically significant.Table 1Summary of demographic and clinical variables in the tracheostomy and translaryngeal tube groupsResultsAfter excluding those patients who had been given a tracheostomy before RCC admission or who had terminal cancer, a total of 985 patients remained with tracheostomy and 227 patients with a translaryngeal tube included in the study. Table Table11 summarizes the patient demographics and the clinical variables assessed with respect to MV grouping (tracheostomy or translaryngeal tube). Significant differences were found between gender distribution, origin of patients, APACHE II score, reason for MV, ICU MV days, modified GCS score, PImax, PaO2/FIO2, and BUN levels (P < 0.05 for all).
Table Table22 summarizes the outcome variables for the two groups. Significant between-group differences were found for all of the following: in-hospital mortality, length of hospital stay, RCC length of stay, and total mechanical ventilation days (all P < 0.01).Table 2Summary of outcome variables in the tracheostomy and translaryngeal tube groupsTable Table33 shows the factors significantly associated with both successful weaning and survival in all patients, as determined using stepwise logistic regression. Patients who had a median severity of disease (APACHE II score <18), were adequately nourished (albumin >2.5), and had normal metabolism (BUN <40) were significantly more likely to be successfully weaned and to survive (P < 0.01 for all).
Patients who had tracheostomies were borderline significantly more likely to be weaned (P = 0.06), and also significantly more likely to survive (P < 0.01).Table 3Factors associated with successful weaning and survival in mechanical ventilation patients as determined by using stepwise logistic regressionAs previously noted, because of the significant Dacomitinib baseline heterogeneity between the tracheostomy and translaryngeal groups (see Table Table1);1); we further analyzed the data by performing a case-matched comparison. Table Table44 shows the results of this comparison.