Relationship between norepinephrine dose, tachycardia and outcome in septic shock: A multicentre evaluation

Abstract Purpose Septic shock is associated with massive release of endogenous catecholamines. Adrenergic agents may exacerbate catecholamine toxicity and contribute to poor outcomes. We sought to determine whether an association existed between tachycardia and mortality in septic shock patients requiring norepinephrine for more than 6 h despite adequate volume resuscitation. Materials and methods Multicentre retrospective observational study on 730 adult patients in septic shock consecutively admitted to eight European ICUs between 2011 and 2013. Three timepoints were selected: T1 (first hour of infusion of norepinephrine), Tpeak (time of highest dose during the first 24 h of treatment), and T24 (24-h post-T1). Binary logistic regression models were constructed for the three time-points. Results Overall ICU mortality was 38.4%. Mortality was higher in those requiring high-dose (≥0.3 mcg/kg/min) versus low-dose ( Conclusions Use of high-dose norepinephrine and concurrent tachycardia are associated with poor outcomes in septic shock.