Between blood glucose and mortality in critically ill patients: Retrospective analysis of the MIMIC‐IV database

Abstract Aims/Introduction Mean blood glucose (MBG) level is associated with mortality among critically ill patients. We undertook a cohort study to investigate the relationship between MBG and mortality in critically ill patients. Materials and Methods Critically ill patients were enrolled from the Medical Information Mart for Intensive Care IV (MIMIC‐IV) database. MBG was calculated to represent the overall glycemic status during intensive care unit (ICU) hospitalization, and a multivariate logistic regression determined the relationship between MBG and ICU mortality in different subgroups of critically ill patients. Results A total of 8,973 patients were included in the study, 1,244 of whom died within 28 days, including 5,402 men and 3,571 women. Multivariate adjusted restricted cubic spline analyses suggested that the relationship between MBG and ICU mortality was a “J” shape. Logistic regression showed 28 day mortality in group 3 (glucose ≥10 mmol/L): the adjusted odds ratio was 2.06 (95% confidence interval 1.65–2.57). The results of subgroup analysis showed that hyperglycemia had a more significant impact on ICU mortality in patients without diabetes, hypoglycemia and liver disease, and the ICU mortality risk of non‐diabetes patients was always higher than that of diabetes patients with the same hyperglycemia level. Conclusions Current evidence suggested a J‐shaped relationship between MBG and mortality in critically ill patients.