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Introduction: Studies have demonstrated that trauma patients with early-ventilator associated pneumonia (early-VAP, < 7 days) have decreased risk of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and Pseudomonas aeruginosa infections. We hypothesize that routinely using broad-spectrum antibiotics is unnecessary to treat trauma patients with the diagnosis of early-VAP., Methods: This retrospective cohort study included adult trauma patients with the diagnosis of VAP. The primary outcome was the presence of MRSA and/or P. aeruginosa in patients with early- and late-VAP. Secondary outcomes included the bacterial susceptibility of pathogens to methicillin, ampicillin/sulbactam, ceftriaxone, piperacillin/tazobactam, and cefepime. Intensive care unit (ICU) and hospital length of stay (LOS), ventilator-free days, and in-hospital mortality were also collected., Results: 164 patients met inclusion criteria, and 208 organisms (n = 90 early vs n = 118 late) were identified by respiratory culture. The incidence of MRSA and P. aeruginosa in early-VAP was 7.7% (7/90) and 5.6% (5/90), respectively. The susceptibility of bacteria causing early-VAP to ampicillin/sulbactam and ceftriaxone was 73.3% (66/90) and 83.3% (75/90), respectively. Ventilator-free days at 30 days was similar between groups ( P = .649). Patients with late-VAP spent more time in the ICU ( P = .040); however, in-hospital mortality was higher in the early-VAP group ( P = .012)., Conclusions: Ampicillin/sulbactam or ceftriaxone monotherapy did not provide reliable broad-spectrum coverage for early-VAP in our cohort. These findings highlight the importance of each institution performing a similar analysis to ensure adequate initial treatment of VAP., Competing Interests: Declaration of Conflicting InterestsThe author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Background: Opioids remain the mainstay treatment of acute pain caused by trauma. The lack of evidence driven prescribing creates a challenging situation for providers. We hypothesized that the implementation of a trauma discharge opioid bundle (TDOB) would decrease the total morphine milligram equivalents (MME) prescribed at discharge while maintaining pain control., Methods: This was a pre-post study of adult trauma patients before and after implementation of a TDOB to guide the prescription of opioids and discharge prescription education in patients discharged from a level one trauma center. The pre-group and post-group, included consecutively discharged patients from September through November in 2018 and 2019. The primary outcome was the total MME prescribed at discharge., Results: A total of 377 patients met inclusion criteria. One hundred and fifty-one patients were included in the pre-group and 226 in the post-group. The total MME prescribed at discharge (225 ± [150-300] pre vs 200 ± [100-225] post, P = < .001) and maximum MME/day (45 ± [30-45] vs 30 ± [20-45], P = .004) were significantly less in the post-group. Incidence of outpatient refills within fourteen days were similar. More non-opioid pain adjuncts were prescribed post-intervention and discharge pain education was provided more frequently., Conclusion: The implementation of a TDOB significantly reduced the MME prescribed at discharge without increasing the number of opioid refills., Competing Interests: Declaration of Conflicting InterestsThe author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Background: Delirium occurs frequently in critically ill and injured patients and is associated with significant morbidity and mortality. Limited data exists on the risk factors for developing delirium in critically ill trauma patients and the effect of antipsychotic (AP) medications on delirium progression., Objective: The objective of this study is to determine the incidence of delirium in critically ill trauma versus non-trauma surgical patients and determine if the presence of trauma was associated with intensive care unit (ICU) delirium. Secondary outcomes included identifying risk factors for delirium and determining the impact of AP medication use on delirium progression in critically ill trauma patients., Methods: This retrospective review studies adult trauma/surgical ICU patients admitted between May 2017-July 2018 to a level I trauma and tertiary referral center. Regression modeling was used to determine the impact of AP use on delirium-free days., Results: Delirium was more common in critically ill trauma patients versus non-trauma surgical ICU patients [54/157 (34.4%) vs 42/270 (15.6%), P < .001]. Of the 54 trauma patients with delirium, 28 (52%) received an AP medication for delirium treatment and in the multiple linear regression analysis, AP use was significantly associated with fewer delirium-free days ( P = .02)., Discussion: Higher admission sequential organ failure assessment scores and increased length of stay were significantly associated with delirium onset in critically ill trauma patients. Use of AP medications for delirium treatment in this population had a negative impact on delirium-free days.