Persistent inflammation, immunosuppression, and catabolism syndrome (PICS) is a serious condition after critical care. We examined the efficacy of antithrombin, which may attenuate coagulopathy with the control of inflammation, for PICS among patients with sepsis-induced disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC). The present study used the inpatient claims database with laboratory findings to identify patients admitted to intensive care units and diagnosed with sepsis and DIC. A composite of the incidence of PICS on day 14 or 14-day mortality as the primary outcome was compared between the antithrombin and control groups using a propensity-score-matched analysis. Secondary outcomes were the incidence of PICS on day 28, 28-day mortality, and in-hospital mortality. A total of 324 well-balanced matched pairs were generated from 1622 patients. The primary outcome did not differ between the antithrombin and control groups (63.9% vs. 68.2%, respectively, p = 0.245). However, the incidences of 28-day and in-hospital mortality were significantly lower in the antithrombin group (16.0% vs. 23.5% and 24.4% vs. 35.8%, respectively). Similar results were obtained in a sensitivity analysis using overlap weighting. Antithrombin did not reduce the occurrence of PICS on day 14 in patients with sepsis-induced DIC; however, it was associated with a better mid-term (day 28) prognosis.
Keywords: DIC; PICS; antithrombin; coagulopathy; persistent inflammation.