Association between the use of β-adrenergic receptor blockers and all-cause mortality in sepsis-associated rhabdomyolysis syndrome: a cohort study.

Background: To assess the association between the use of β-blockers and all-cause mortality in Sepsis-associated Rhabdomyolysis (SAR). Methods: This retrospective cohort study involves adults with SAR. Study variables were extracted from the Medical Information Mart for Intensive Care-IV (MIMIC-IV) database. Propensity score matching (PSM) was conducted at a 1:1 ratio to analyze the association between the use of β-blockers and in-hospital mortality in SAR. Multivariable analysis was employed to adjust for confounding factors, while sensitivity analysis and subgroup analysis were conducted to demonstrate the robustness of the results. Results: This study involved pre-matched and propensity score-matched cohorts comprising 1,194 and 584 patients, respectively. Through propensity score matching (PSM) analysis, this study observed a notable difference in in-hospital mortality rates. Importantly, the utilization of β-blockers was found to be significantly associated with lower in-hospital all-cause mortality. Furthermore, sensitivity analyses conducted on the entire cohort, as well as cohorts excluding patients with specific comorbidities, consistently demonstrated a significant association between β-blocker usage and lower in-hospital mortality. Subgroup analyses further underscored the robustness of the findings. Conclusions: The use of β-blockers was associated with lower mortality in patients with SAR. However, prospective studies are needed to validate this finding.