The ISTH DIC score predicts outcome in non-septic patients admitted to a cardiovascular intensive care unit.

BACKGROUND:The International Society of Thrombosis and Haemostasis (ISTH) disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) score is widely used to predict mortality in critically ill - typically septic - patients. The objective of this study was to investigate whether the ISTH DIC-2001 and DIC-2018 score can be used to predict the 30-day mortality in non-septic patients in an intensive care unit (ICU). METHODS:In this single-center, prospective observational study we included all patients ≥18 years of age who were admitted to a medical ICU with a focus on cardiovascular diseases between August 2012 and 2013. The DIC-2001 and DIC-2018 scores were calculated on admission (DIC-2001-0h and DIC-2018-0h) and 72 hours thereafter (DIC-2001-72h and DIC-2018-72h) and were classified as overt when ≥ 5 for DIC-2001 and ≥ 4 for DIC-2018. RESULTS:A total of 233 patients were included in this study. Excluding septic patients and patients after routine surgery/procedures, we calculated the DIC score for 167 patients (32.4% female; median age 64.9 years). Overt DIC-2001-0h, DIC-2018-0h and overt DIC-2001-72h scores were associated with a significantly higher 30-day mortality rate (52.9% vs. 25.0%, 46.2% vs 21.2%, and 57.1% vs. 23.7%; p < 0.04). The DIC-2001 scores and the DIC-2018-0h score significantly predicted the 30-day mortality. CONCLUSION:This study suggests that the DIC score may be applied to non-septic ICU populations, and indicates that it is a useful tool for mortality prediction, regardless of the underlying disease.