Ability of the modified NUTRIC score to predict mortality in patients requiring short-term versus prolonged acute mechanical ventilation: a retrospective cohort study

Background: The modified NUTRIC (nutritional risk in the critically ill) score has been reported to predict clinical outcomes in critically ill patients. However, the applicability of this score may differ between patients undergoing short-term mechanical ventilation (STMV, < 96 h) and those undergoing prolonged acute mechanical ventilation (PAMV, ⩾96 h), as PAMV patients typically experience significantly higher morbidity and mortality. Objective: This study aimed to investigate the predictive ability of modified NUTRIC score for predicting 28-day mortality in patients receiving STMV and PAMV. Design: Retrospective single-center cohort study. Methods: We enrolled patients who received mechanical ventilation (MV) on the day of admission to the intensive care unit (ICU) from 1 December 2015 to 30 November 2020. Modified NUTRIC scores were calculated based on the clinical data of each patient at ICU admission. Results: The study population comprised 464 patients, including 319 (68.8%) men with a mean age of 69.7 years. Among these patients, 132 (28.4%) received STMV and 332 (71.6%) received PAMV. The overall 28-day mortality rate was 26.7%, which was significantly higher in STMV patients than in PAMV patients (37.9% versus 22.3%, p < 0.001). Evaluation of the predictive performance of the modified NUTRIC score for 28-day mortality revealed areas under the receiver operating characteristic curves of 0.672 [95% confidence interval (CI): 0.627–0.714] for total patients, 0.819 (95% CI, 0.742–0.880) for STMV patients, and 0.595 (95% CI, 0.540–0.648) for PAMV patients. The best overall cutoff value was 5 in total, STMV, and PAMV patients. This cutoff value was a significant predictor of 28-day mortality based on the Cox proportional hazard model for total [hazards ratio (HR): 2.681; 95% CI: 1.683–4.269] and STMV (HR: 5.725; 95% CI: 2.057–15.931) patients, but not for PAMV patients. Conclusion: The modified NUTRIC score is more effective in predicting 28-day mortality in patients undergoing STMV than in those undergoing PAMV.