Multiple Organ Dysfunction Score Is Superior to the Obstetric-Specific Sepsis in Obstetrics Score in Predicting Mortality in Septic Obstetric Patients.
Mortality prediction scores have been used for a long time in ICUs; however, numerous studies have shown that they over-predict mortality in the obstetric population. With sepsis remaining a major cause of obstetric mortality, we aimed to look at five mortality prediction scores (one obstetric-based and four general) in the septic obstetric population and compare them to a nonobstetric septic control group.



Women in the age group of 16-50 years with an admission diagnosis or suspicion of sepsis were included. In a multicenter obstetric population (n = 797), these included all pregnant and postpartum patients up to 6 weeks postpartum. An age- and gender-matched control nonobstetric population was drawn from a single-center general critical care population (n = 2,461). Sepsis in Obstetric Score, Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation II, Simplified Acute Physiology Score II, Sequential Organ Failure Assessment, and Multiple Organ Dysfunction Scores were all applied to patients meeting inclusion criteria in both cohorts, and their area under the receiver-operator characteristic curves was calculated to find the most accurate predictor.



A total of 146 septic patients were found for the obstetric cohort and 299 patients for the nonobstetric control cohort. The Sepsis in Obstetric Score, Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation II, Simplified Acute Physiology Score II, Sequential Organ Failure Assessment, and Multiple Organ Dysfunction Scores gave area under the receiver-operator characteristic curves of 0.67, 0.68, 0.72, 0.79, and 0.84 in the obstetric cohort, respectively, and 0.64, 0.72, 0.61, 0.78, and 0.74 in the nonobstetric cohort, respectively. The Sepsis in Obstetric Score performed similarly to all the other scores with the exception of the Multiple Organ Dysfunction Score, which was significantly better (p < 0.05).



The Sepsis in Obstetric Score, designed specifically for sepsis in obstetric populations, was not better than general severity of illness scoring systems. Furthermore, the Sepsis in Obstetric Score performance was no different in an obstetric sepsis population compared to a nonobstetric sepsis population. The Multiple Organ Dysfunction Score is a simple organ-based score, and this result supports the use of organ-based outcome predictors in ICU even in an obstetric sepsis population.
1Centre for Heart Lung Innovation, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada. 2Wessex School of Anesthesia, Wessex Deanery, Southern House, Otterbourne, Winchester, England. 3Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada. 4CFRI Reproduction and Healthy Pregnancy Cluster, Vancouver, BC, Canada. 5Department of Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.
Alice B R
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Aarvold
Helen M
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Ryan
Laura A
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Peter
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von Dadelszen
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Fjell
Keith R
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Walley
D018806:APACHE; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D003422:Critical Care; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007362:Intensive Care Units; D008875:Middle Aged; D063305:Organ Dysfunction Scores; D011247:Pregnancy; D011251:Pregnancy Complications, Infectious / Q000401:mortality*; D057216:Propensity Score; D011644:Puerperal Disorders / Q000401:mortality*; D012372:ROC Curve; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D018805:Sepsis / Q000401:mortality*; D055815:Young Adult