Endocrine Dysfunction Criteria in Critically Ill Children: The PODIUM Consensus Conference

Abstract

Context: Endocrine dysfunction is common in critically ill children and is manifested by abnormalities in glucose, thyroid hormone, and cortisol metabolism.

Objective: To develop consensus criteria for endocrine dysfunction in critically ill children by assessing the association of various biomarkers with clinical and functional outcomes.

Data sources: PubMed and Embase were searched from January 1992 to January 2020.

Study selection: We included studies in which researchers evaluated critically ill children with abnormalities in glucose homeostasis, thyroid function and adrenal function, performance characteristics of assessment and/or scoring tools to screen for endocrine dysfunction, and outcomes related to mortality, organ-specific status, and patient-centered outcomes. Studies of adults, premature infants or animals, reviews and/or commentaries, case series with sample size ≤10, and non-English-language studies were excluded.

Data extraction: Data extraction and risk-of-bias assessment for each eligible study were performed by 2 independent reviewers.

Results: The systematic review supports the following criteria for abnormal glucose homeostasis (blood glucose [BG] concentrations >150 mg/dL [>8.3 mmol/L] and BG concentrations <50 mg/dL [<2.8 mmol/L]), abnormal thyroid function (serum total thyroxine [T4] <4.2 μg/dL [<54 nmol/L]), and abnormal adrenal function (peak serum cortisol concentration <18 μg/dL [500 nmol/L]) and/or an increment in serum cortisol concentration of <9 μg/dL (250 nmol/L) after adrenocorticotropic hormone stimulation.

Limitations: These included variable sampling for BG measurements, limited reporting of free T4 levels, and inconsistent interpretation of adrenal axis testing.

Conclusions: We present consensus criteria for endocrine dysfunction in critically ill children that include specific measures of BG, T4, and adrenal axis testing.