Proteomic Analysis of Bronchoalveolar Lavage to Identify Subgroups in Adults with Suspected Ventilator-associated Pneumonia in Intensive Care Units

What this Trial Is About

Ventilator-associated pneumonia VAP is a frequent and serious infection in patients receiving mechanical ventilation in intensive care units. Diagnosing VAP accurately is challenging with current methods, often leading to unnecessary antibiotic use or delayed treatment. This study aims to identify distinct biological and clinical subgroups of patients with suspected VAP by analyzing proteins found in bronchoalveolar lavage BAL fluid using advanced proteomic technology. The research is observational and involves multiple centers across several European countries, enrolling about 400 adult ICU patients. Participants are patients undergoing BAL or mini-BAL for clinical reasons related to suspected lower respiratory tract infection. Residual BAL fluid samples will be analyzed using liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry to classify patients into pneumoclusters based on protein profiles. These groups will be characterized by clinical, microbiological, and radiological features and compared for outcomes such as mortality and days free from ventilator, antibiotics, ICU, and hospital within 30 days. No experimental treatments are given all patients receive standard care. Participants will have data collected in electronic records with quality checks, and biological samples will be stored securely for up to ten years for further analysis. The study will assess patient clusters at enrollment and monitor clinical outcomes for 30 days. The goal is to find candidate biomarkers to improve diagnostic accuracy and guide personalized treatment in the future. Results will be shared through scientific publications and conferences.

ClusterVAP: Multicentre Proteomic Endotyping of Ventilator-associated Pneumonia