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Assessment of the PEEP Responsiveness to Titrate End-expiratory Pressure and of the Need for Muscle Relaxation During Prone Positioning in Moderate-to-severe Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome: A Master Protocol

Assessment of the PEEP Responsiveness to Titrate End-expiratory Pressure and of the Need for Muscle Relaxation During Prone Positioning in Moderate-to-severe Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome: A Master Protocol

Status
Recruiting
Phases
Unknown
Study type
Interventional
Source
ClinicalTrials.gov
Registry ID
NCT06849570
Acronym
PEPER
Enrollment
1200
Registered
2025-02-27
Start date
2025-11-05
Completion date
2029-11-05
Last updated
2026-08-28

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS), Intensive Care Units (ICUs)

Brief summary

Despite best supportive care, mortality of the Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrom (ARDS) remains high. In the absence of specific treatments, providing safe and efficient mechanical ventilation (MV) is key to survival. The use of low tidal volumes (VT) and plateau pressures (PPLAT) improves survival in randomized controlled trials (RCTs), but the safest VT to be applied for each patient remains unknown. Whether targeting low ∆P instead of a 6 mL/kg VT improves outcome has not been tested prospectively. The optimal method to set PEEP is also a matter of debate. As the amount of potentially recruitable lung vary widely among patients and is strongly associated with the response to PEEP, it may be necessary to tailor PEEP settings based on the response to a PEEP trial. The first aim is to test a personalized approach to set PEEP widely supported by the literature. The first hypothesis is that i) patients with greater amounts of recruitable lung may benefit from higher PEEP levels, provided that attention is paid to maintain ∆P below 14 cmH2O, ii) setting PEEP based on results of a PEEP-responsiveness test improves survival as compared to low- and high-PEEP strategies applied independently of the patient response. Apart from VT reduction and PPLAT control below 30 cmH2O, only 2 interventions demonstrated a reduction of mortality in large RCTs: a 48-hour continuous infusion of neuromuscular blocking agents (NMBAs) at the acute phase of ARDS6 and the use of prone positioning (PP). Whereas there is little doubt on the utility of PP in patients with PaO2/FiO2 ratio \< 150 mmHg, there is more controversy on the impact of NMBAs on survival. Despite a strong rationale and a very widespread use in clinical practice, no current guidelines answer the question of the best timing of muscle relaxation in moderate to severe ARDS patients treated with PP. As a second aim, the hypothesis is that the early systematic and combined use of NMBAs improved survival of patients with moderate to severe ARDS requiring prone positioning after optimization of PEEP settings.

Interventions

OTHERMinimal distension

Patients receive tidal volume (VT) of 6 mL/kg and conservative positive end-expiratory pressure (PEEP) setting.

OTHERMaximal Recruitment

Patients receive tidal volume adjusted to limit plateau pressure (∆P) to 14 cmH2O and the highest possible PEEP while maintaining plateau pressure (PPLAT) ≤ 27 cmH2O.

OTHERProne position + early NMBAs

NMBAs given as soon as possible after randomization

OTHERProne position + rescue NMBAs

NMBAs given only as a rescue

Sponsors

Assistance Publique - Hôpitaux de Paris
Lead SponsorOTHER

Study design

Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
OTHER
Masking
DOUBLE (Caregiver, Investigator)

Masking description

Medical team blinded for first randomization. The second randomization is open label.

Intervention model description

Master Protocol, including two randomized, controlled, clinical trials with Bayesian adaptive designs * First randomization with 3 parallel arms (first ratio 1:1:1) A. Minimal distension B. Maximal recruitment C. PRT-guided ventilation strategy * Second randomization within 4 to 72 hours, if persistent PaO2/FiO2 ≤150 mmHg, with two parallel arms (ratio 1:1) 1. Prone position with systematic NMBAs 2. Prone position without systematic NMBAs

Eligibility

Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to No maximum
Healthy volunteers
No

Inclusion criteria

* Invasive mechanical ventilation within 96 hours of ICU admission and within 72 hours of tracheal intubation for first randomization and then within 72 hours of the first randomization for the second randomization * Patients meeting the Berlin ARDS definition criteria with hypoxemia characterized as * for first randomization: PaO2/FiO2 ≤150 mmHg on a PEEP ≥5 cmH2O with FiO2≥0.6 while VT is 6 ml/kg Predicted Body Weight (PBW) and adequate sedation level to adjust mechanical ventilation settings * for second randomization: PaO2/FiO2 ≤150 mmHg on optimized ventilatory settings according to the first randomization, confirmed by two Arterial blood gas (ABG) analyses separated by an interval time of 4 hours and observed within 72 hours of the first randomization * Informed consent signed: * by the patient * Or informed consent signed by a family members/trustworthy person if his condition does not allow him to express his consent by written as per L. 1111-6 * Or in a situation urgently and in the absence of family members/trustworthy person, the patient can be enrolled. The consent to participate to the research will be requested as soon as the condition of the patient will allow him to consent. * Health insurance coverage

Exclusion criteria

* Age \< 18 years * Known pregnancy or breastfeeding * Participation in another interventional studies as long as these studies do not interfere with the primary endpoint and the secondary safety objectives of PEPER, or being in the exclusion period at the end of a previous study. * Intracranial pressure \> 30 mm Hg or cerebral perfusion pressure \< 60 mmHg * Severe chronic respiratory disease requiring long-term O2 therapy or home mechanical ventilation (except Continuous positive arway pressure (CPAP)/ Bilevel positive airway pressure (BIPAP) used for sleep apnea syndrome) * Chronic interstitial lung disease * Continuous neuromuscular blockade infusion at enrolment * Previous hypersensitivity or anaphylactic reaction to any NMBA * Neuromuscular disease that may potentiate neuromuscular blockade or impair spontaneous ventilation: amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Guillain-Barré syndrome, myasthenia gravis, upper spinal injury at level C5 or above * Patients on ECMO or any technique of extracorporeal CO2 removal * Sickle cell disease * Actual body weight \>1 kg/cm of height * Severe chronic liver disease defined as a Child-Pugh score of 12-15 * Pneumothorax at randomization * Expected duration of mechanical ventilation \<48 hours * Simplified acute physiology score SAPS II score \>75 at the time of enrolment or suffering from a disease with an estimated survival time of less than two months * Decision to withhold life-sustaining treatment * Patients deprived of freedom or under legal authority * Unstable spine fracture

Design outcomes

Primary

MeasureTime frame
28-day all-cause mortality28 days after randomization

Secondary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Ratio of arterial oxygen partial pressure to inspired oxygen fraction24 hours after randomizationPaO2/FiO2
Oxygen index24 hours after randomization
Tidal volume24 hours after randomizationAmount of air that is inhaled or exhaled during a normal, relaxed breath
Tidal Volume72 hours after randomizationAmount of air that is inhaled or exhaled during a normal, relaxed breath
Respiratory Rate24 hours after randomization
Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) score24 hours after randomizationSequential Organ Failure Assessment Score varies from 0 to 4 and permit to assess organ failure. A higher score indicates better neurological function
All-cause mortality90 days after inclusion
All-cause Intensive care unit mortality90 days after inclusion
All-cause hospital mortality90 days after inclusion
Duration of mechanical ventilationUp to 1 year
Ventilator Free Days28 days after inclusion
Intensive Care Unit length of stayUp to 1 year
Hospital length of stayUp to 1 year
ICU free-days28 days after inclusion
Total Postitive end-expiratory pressure (PEEP)24 hours after randomization
Total Positive end-expiratory pressure (PEEP)48 hours after randomization
Peak Pressure24 hours after randomization
Plateau Pressure24 hours after randomization
compliance of the respiratory system24 hours after randomization
Hospital-free-days28 days after inclusion
Occurence of barotrauma7 days after inclusionDefined as any pneumothorax, subcutaneous emphysema, pneumomediastinum, or pneumatocele of more than 2 cm detected on image examinations
Occurrence of acute cor pulmonale7 days after inclusionDefined by the combination of a right/left ventricular diameter ratio greater than 0.6 and a paradoxical septum
ICU acquired weaknessUp to 1 yearAssessed by the medical research council (MRC) score at ICU discharge. The score ranges from 0 to 60. A score \< 48 defines ICU acquired weakness
Number of days using other rescue proceduresUp to 1 yearOther rescue procedure including inhaled nitric oxide, almitrine, epoprostenol sodium, extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), extracorporeal CO2 removal (ECCO2R)
Use of NMBAs during the first 3 days following the first randomization or following inclusion in the rescue arm of the second randomizationUp to day 28
Muscle relaxants-free daysUp to day 7Between inclusion and day 7
Number of days alive and without continuous IV administration of sedatives/analgesicsAt day 7
Presence of delirium (CAM-ICU)At day 14
DisabilityAt 1 yearAssessed by the Activities of Daily Living score (Lawton IADL) The score is divided in 8 domains and ranges from 0 to 8. The higher the score, the more independent is the person.
Quality of life questionnaireAt 1 yearUsing EQ-5D-5L It evaluates five dimensions : mobility, self-care, usual activities, pain/discomfort and anxiety/depression and each dimension has five levels : no problems, slight problems, moderate problems, severe problems and extreme problems. Answers are given on a 5-point scale by domain, the higher the score, the poorer the quality of life.
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)At 1 yearUsing the Impact Event Scale-Revised (IES-R) It contains 22 items scored on a 5-point Likert scale Total score ranges from 0 to 88. Higher scores indicate more severe symptoms.
Cognitive dysfunctionAt 1 yearUsing T-MoCA score It evaluates 8 cognitive domains. The total score ranges from 0 to 30 points. A score of 26 or higher is considered as normal.
Return to work statusAt 1 yearSubsequent return to work. Return to work status: employment status
Place of residenceAt 1 year
Paralysis recall assessmentAt 1 yearUsing a modified Brice questionnaire Patient responses are categorized into levels of awareness and analyzed to determine if awareness occured and its nature. The result can be : no awareness, awareness with explicit recall, awareness with dreams, emotional distress, inconclusive responses
Severe acidosisWithin 8 hours after randomizationpH\<7.10

Countries

France

Contacts

CONTACTAlexandre Demoule, MD PhD
alexandre.demoule@aphp.fr+33 1 42 16 38 31
CONTACTJérôme Lambert, MD PhD
jerome.lambert@u-paris.fr+33142499742

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Data processed: Aug 29, 2026