VEXUS-REA : Evaluation of Ultrasound Parameters of Venous Congestion in Patients in a Medical Intensive Care Unit

NCT07438015 | Not Yet Recruiting

• 1 other identifier: 2025-A02033-46
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 525
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

Shock is a common and serious cause of admission to intensive care. Vascular filling is one of the cornerstones of shock treatment, aimed at increasing cardiac output and restoring adequate organ perfusion through rapid intravenous administration of a solution. However, this vascular filling can be accompanied by venous congestion, which can be harmful. Fluid administration must therefore be sparing and carefully considered. However, it is difficult to assess the correct amount of intravenous fluid to inject. Multi-site venous ultrasound (inferior vena cava, suprahepatic vein, portal vein, renal vein), recently published under a score called VExUS, could be a useful bedside tool for documenting venous congestion and avoiding excessive vascular filling. Nevertheless, this tool has been little evaluated in the general intensive care population, particularly in patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). Its link with other venous sites (femoral, popliteal) has also been little studied to date. The main objective of our study is to describe the distribution of the VEXUS score among patients in a general intensive care unit. The secondary objectives are:

• To study the feasibility of measuring the VEXUS score in patients with ARDS, including during prone positioning, a recommended and frequently used treatment for this condition, which could make it difficult to acquire venous ultrasound data.
• In this case, other more accessible venous flows could be analysed, namely the femoral venous flow and the popliteal venous flow. We will therefore also study their feasibility during prone positioning sessions.
• Subsequently, we will study the correspondence between the VEXUS score and these other types of venous flow (femoral, popliteal).
• Finally, we will evaluate the association between the VEXUS score in our general intensive care population and the long-term prognosis of patients, in this case death on day 28 and the occurrence of acute renal failure requiring renal replacement therapy during the intensive care stay.

Conditions

Venous Congestion

Keywords

VExUS score; venous congestion; femoral venous flow; popliteal venous flow

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• Distribution of the VEXUS score among all patients admitted (for any reason) in a general intensive care unit

  Describe the distribution of the VEXUS score among all patients admitted (for any reason) in a general intensive care unit at Besançon Teaching Hospital (Besançon, city, FRANCE).

  From the inclusion of the first patient to the 525th patient (approximately 9 months)

Secondary Outcomes (9)

• Feasability of VEXUS score measurement in prone position

  From the inclusion of the first patient to the 525th patient (approximately 9 months)

• Feasability of femoral venous flow measurement in supine and prone position

  From the inclusion of the first patient to the 525th patient (approximately 9 months)

• Feasability of popliteal venous flow measurement in supine and prone position

  From the inclusion of the first patient to the 525th patient (approximately 9 months)

• VEXUS score evolution before, during and after prone positioning for ARDS

  From the inclusion of the first patient to the 525th patient (approximately 9 months)

• Femoral venous flow evolution before, during and after prone positioning for ARDS

  From the inclusion of the first patient to the 525th patient (approximately 9 months)

Study Arms (1)

Every adult patients admitted to a medical intensive care unit for any reason

EXPERIMENTAL

Every adult patients admitted to a medical intensive care unit (Besançon Teaching Hospital, Besançon, FRANCE) for any reason.

Procedure: Venous ultrasound (inferior vena cava, portal vein, suprahepatic vein, and renal vein to calculate the VEXUS score ; femoral vein and popliteal vein)

Interventions

Venous ultrasound (inferior vena cava, portal vein, suprahepatic vein, and renal vein to calculate the VEXUS score ; femoral vein and popliteal vein) PROCEDURE

The research procedure consists of an abdominal venous ultrasound (inferior vena cava, portal vein, suprahepatic vein and renal vein) to calculate the VEXUS score, and a venous ultrasound of the lower limbs (femoral vein and popliteal vein). This procedure will be performed at the same time as the cardiac ultrasound (using the same equipment), which is a routine examination. This is a non-invasive, non-irradiating examination that has been proven to be safe. There are therefore no risks associated with the research.

Every adult patients admitted to a medical intensive care unit for any reason

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years+
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: No
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• Patients admitted to medical intensive care at Besançon Teaching Hospital for any reason.
• Aged over 18.
• Affiliated with a French social security scheme or beneficiary of such a scheme.
• No objection to participating in the study.
• Minors
• Pregnant women and breastfeeding mothers
• Persons deprived of their liberty by judicial or administrative decision; persons undergoing compulsory psychiatric treatment; persons admitted to a health or social care institution for purposes other than research
• Adults subject to legal protection measures or unable to give their consent
• Subjects who are excluded from another study or listed in the 'national volunteer registry'.

You may not qualify if:

• \- Portal vein, suprahepatic or femoral vein thrombosis at the time of ultrasound examination.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Besancon: lead

Study Sites (1)

Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Jean MINJOZ

Besançon, 25000, France

Location

Related Publications (40)

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  BACKGROUND

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Hyperemia

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Vascular Diseases; Cardiovascular Diseases

Central Study Contacts

Hadrien WINISZEWSKI, MCU-PH

CONTACT

0033381668127; hwiniszewski@chu-besancon.fr

Valentin LAFAY, PHC

CONTACT

0033381668127; vlafay@chu-besancon.fr

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: NA
• Masking: NONE
• Purpose: DIAGNOSTIC
• Intervention Model: SINGLE GROUP
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: SPONSOR

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: December 29, 2025
• First Posted: February 27, 2026
• Study Start: March 1, 2026
• Primary Completion (Estimated): October 1, 2026
• Study Completion (Estimated): October 1, 2026
• Last Updated: February 27, 2026

Record last verified: 2025-12

Locations

FR (1)