Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42265410›Full record

ArticleCanadian journal of anaesthesia = Journal canadien d'anesthesie2026

New and persistent psychoactive medication use in intensive care unit survivors with COVID-19: a multicentre population-based cohort study.

Andrea C Shysh, Finlay A McAlister, Luan Manh Chu, Jason Weatherald, Sean M Bagshaw, Ken Kuljit S Parhar, Fernando G Zampieri, Jacob C Jentzer, Erik Youngson, Sameer S Kadri and 2 more

Abstract readMulticenter Study
PubMed Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Canadian journal of anaesthesia = Journal canadien d'anesthesie, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

12 authors.

Andrea C ShyshDivision of General Internal Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada.
Finlay A McAlisterDivision of General Internal Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada.
Luan Manh ChuThe Alberta Strategy for Patient Oriented Research Support Unit (AbSPORU), Calgary and Edmonton, AB, Canada.
Jason WeatheraldThe Canadian VIGOUR Centre, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada.
Sean M BagshawDepartment of Critical Care Medicine, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada.
Ken Kuljit S ParharDepartment of Critical Care Medicine, University of Calgary & Alberta Health Services, Calgary, AB, Canada.
Fernando G ZampieriDepartment of Critical Care Medicine, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada.
Jacob C JentzerDepartment of Cardiovascular Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA.
Erik YoungsonThe Alberta Strategy for Patient Oriented Research Support Unit (AbSPORU), Calgary and Edmonton, AB, Canada.
Sameer S KadriCritical Care Medicine Department, NIH Clinical Center, Bethesda, MD, USA.
Padma KaulThe Canadian VIGOUR Centre, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada.
Sean van DiepenThe Canadian VIGOUR Centre, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada. sv9@ualberta.ca.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-6688-828X

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

purposeWe sought to determine the frequency of new psychoactive medication prescriptions after hospital discharge in COVID-19 intensive care unit (ICU) survivors and describe associated 1-year clinical outcomes.

methodsIn a multicentre population-based cohort study using linked provincial health data sets from Alberta, Canada to identify comorbidities, ICU interventions, laboratory values, and medications, we included all adults admitted to an ICU with COVID-19 who survived to hospital discharge between January 2021 and July 2022. We identified new psychoactive medication recipients at discharge and persistent recipients after 1-year. An inverse probability of treatment weighting model quantified the association with 1-year all-cause mortality, hospital readmission, and emergency department (ED) visits.

resultsWe found that 1,486 psychoactive-naïve adults (mean, 56 yr; 67.5% male) survived an ICU stay with COVID-19, and 261 (17.6%) of these filled psychoactive prescriptions after hospital discharge. Common prescriptions included benzodiazepines (41%), opioids (28.3%), antipsychotics (20.3%), and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (15.0%). At 1 year, 135 (51.7% of new recipients) had persistent medication dispensations. Patients with new discharge prescriptions had higher 1-year all-cause mortality (10.3% vs 5.4%; adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 1.64; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.15 to 2.55), re-hospitalization (37.6% vs 47.5%; aOR, 1.47; 95% CI, 1.20 to 1.81), and ED visits (58.2% vs 41.8%; aOR, 1.95; 95% CI, 1.59 to 2.40).

conclusionsNew psychoactive medication prescriptions were common (17.6%) in COVID-19 ICU survivors, among whom approximately half of patients were still receiving these medications 1 year later. The higher risk of health care utilization and mortality associated with new post-discharge psychoactive medications suggests the need for closer postdischarge follow-up and reassessment of medication appropriateness.

Indexed as

COVID-19COVID-19 Drug TreatmentIntensive Care UnitsPsychotropic DrugsAgedAlbertaCohort StudiesEmergency Room VisitsFemaleHumansMaleMiddle AgedPatient DischargePatient ReadmissionSurvivorsPsychotropic DrugsAntipsychoticsbenzodiazepinesCOVID-19critical careintensive care unitopioids

Identifiers

PMID42265410

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.