The Effect of Etomidate on Outcomes of Trauma Patients

November 30, 2011 updated by: Erik Kulstad, MD, MS, Advocate Hospital System

Rationale: The drug etomidate causes increased mortality if used for continuous sedation in mechanically ventilated patients; however, etomidate continues to be widely used as a single-bolus induction agent for endotracheal intubation because of its favorable hemodynamic properties. Recent data have raised questions regarding the safety of using etomidate for even a single bolus in patients at risk of adrenal insufficiency, emphasizing the fact that single bolus doses of etomidate cause measurable adrenal suppression, and consequently may cause increases in vasopressor requirements and in hospital length of stay. Alternative FDA-approved induction agents, such as midazolam, may be safer than etomidate; however, no studies have formally compared these agents.

Research Hypothesis: The investigators hypothesize that in critically ill trauma patients presenting to the emergency department requiring rapid sequence intubation, the hospital length of stay for patients given etomidate will be greater than for patients given midazolam for induction.

Specific Aims: The specific aim is to determine the difference in hospital length of stay between trauma patients given etomidate and those given midazolam for induction during rapid sequence intubation in the emergency department. The investigators plan to compare the two groups in terms of hospital length of hospital stay, length of stay in the intensive care unit, and duration of intubation by performing a prospective, randomized, trial of critically ill trauma patients presenting to the emergency department requiring intubation. The investigators will also compare the mortality rates in these two groups while controlling for severity of illness and the use of steroids while hospitalized.

Significance: If the use of etomidate to induce anesthesia prior to intubation adversely affects the hospital length of stay of trauma patients, this length of stay might be reduced in such patients by using alternative agents for induction. Since etomidate is currently in widespread use as an induction agent, the results of this study could have significant implications for patient management.

Study Overview

Status

Withdrawn

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Study Type

Interventional

Phase

  • Not Applicable

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

14 years and older (Child, Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

N/A

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • All critically ill trauma patients (defined as patients over the age of 14 years requiring trauma team activation) who present to the ED in need of ventilatory support due to the severity of their illness and injuries.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Age less than 14, do-not-resuscitate status, or cardiopulmonary arrest prior to arrival in the ED.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Double

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Active Comparator: Midazolam
Drug: Midazolam
Experimental: Etomidate
Drug: Etomidate

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Length of Stay

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Advocate Hospital System

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

July 13, 2009

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

July 13, 2009

First Posted (Estimate)

July 14, 2009

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Estimate)

December 1, 2011

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

November 30, 2011

Last Verified

November 1, 2011

More Information

Terms related to this study

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • 4667 - ACH IRB

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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