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The following is a summary of “Integrated clustering of multiple immune marker trajectories reveals different immunotypes in severely injured patients,” published in the July 2024 issue of Critical Care by Bodinier et al.
A better understanding of the complex and evolving immune response in patients with critical illness is needed, as this hinders efforts to predict patient outcomes.
Researchers conducted a retrospective study characterizing the heterogeneous and dynamic immune response in patients with critical illness to better understand its impact on clinical outcomes.
They used clustering to identify patient groups based on immune marker changes during the first ICU week among 339 patients with severe injuries. Initially, common soluble and cellular biomarkers with known variations during sepsis immunosuppression were longitudinally clustered. Subsequently, multi-trajectory clustering was applied to whole-blood immune-related mRNA markers.
The result showed 2 immune types based on the markers, 1 associated with poorer outcomes, a higher likelihood of hospital-acquired infections, increased mortality, and extended hospital stays. The immunotype exhibited hyperinflammation and immunosuppression characteristics, which remained consistent over time.
Investigators concluded that patients with critical illness exhibited 2 distinct longitudinal immunotypes, 1 reflecting a persistently dysregulated immune response, highlighting the potential for patient stratification and future research on immunomodulatory drug targets.
Source: ccforum.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s13054-024-04990-4
