Relationship between lipid profile and sepsis outcome in intensive care unit

Abstract

Background: Sepsis is the leading cause of death in critically ill patients in Intensive Care Units (ICUs). Lipid metabolism may change during sepsis. Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate the lipid profile in patients with sepsis. Methods: After approval of the local ethics committee, all adult patients admitted to a medical ICU of a tertiary teaching hospital were enrolled for one year in a prospective cross-sectional study. The inclusion criterion was the primary diagnosis of sepsis based on the probable or proved source of infection or positive blood culture. The exclusion criterion was the use of any lipid-reducing medications. The serum levels of triglyceride (TG), cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein (LDL), and high-density lipoprotein (HDL) were measured for each patient on the first day after ICU admission. Patients were divided into survivors and non-survivors. Quantitative variables were reported as the mean (± SD). The independent samples t-test was used to compare the means between the two groups.