Please select the eligibility criteria that correspond to the clinical trial below.
Title: N/A
Brief Summary: Clinical practice guidelines for the management of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) recommend treatment with systemic corticosteroids during acute exacerbations. The results of a Cochrane systematic review show that treatment with systemic corticosteroids improves lung function over the first 72 hours of an exacerbation of COPD but the effect on other outcomes, particularly length of hospital stay, is unclear, so further research should be directed at determining the risk-benefit ratio, particularly those at high risk of developing adverse drug reactions. In critically ill patients, corticosteroid treatment is a risk factor of infections, hyperglucemia and critical-illness neuromuscular abnormalities, and these conditions are associated with an increased morbidity and mortality. The effect of treatment with systemic corticosteroids in COPD patients with acute exacerbation requiring mechanical ventilation has not been evaluated investigated so it is unknown if the corticosteroids could reduce the duration of mechanical ventilation and the length of intensive care unit (ICU) stay or if, on the contrary, the development of adverse events could lead to a longer time on mechanical ventilation and ICU stay.

PRIMARY OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the effect of corticosteroids on the duration of mechanical ventilation, the length of ICU stay, the need for tracheal intubation in patients treated with non-invasive mechanical ventilation. To evaluate the frequency of adverse events: secondary infections, pneumonia, arterial hypertension, hyperglucemia, gastrointestinal bleeding, and critical-illness neuromuscular abnormalities. DESING: Multicenter, prospective, randomized, double blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial.The treatment group will receive intravenous methylprednisolone for 10 days and the control group will receive isotonic saline solution.


Options:
A: Inclusion Criteria:

* Adult patients (age \> 18 years) admitted to participating ICUs with:

  1. Primary diagnosis of COPD exacerbation defined as the presence of two or more of the following clinical features: worsening dyspnea, increase in sputum purulence, increase in sputum volume
  2. respiratory failure \[pH \< 7,35 with a PaCO2 \> 45 mm Hg and respiratory rate more than 23 breaths per minute\] requiring mechanical ventilation, invasive or non-invasive mechanical ventilation.

Exclusion Criteria:

1. Primary diagnosis of asthma exacerbation.
2. History of asthma or atopy.
3. Use of systemic corticosteroids within the preceding month.
4. Use of systemic corticosteroids for the treatment of COPD exacerbation at the time of ICU admission for more than 24 hours.
5. Clinical or radiological evidence of pneumonia.
6. Uncontrolled left-ventricular failure (patients with evidence of severe heart failure requiring inotropes or vasoactive drugs).
7. Uncontrolled hypertension arterial (systolic pressure \> 180 mm Hg or diastolic pressure \> 90 mm Hg despite antihypertensive therapy).
8. Uncontrolled diabetes mellitus.
9. Presence of a neuromuscular disease.
10. History of allergy and or adverse reaction to corticosteroids.
B: Inclusion Criteria:

1. Patients admitted to any of the five intensive care units
2. Older than 18 years
3. Nutritional risk screening score (NRS) higher or equal to three upon ICU admission

Exclusion Criteria:

1. Patients with a do not resuscitate (DNR) code or moribund at the time of ICU admission
2. Patients already enrolled in another trial
3. Patients transferred from another intensive care unit with an established nutritional therapy
4. Patients suffering from ketoacidotic or hyperosmolar coma on admission
5. Patients with a body mass index (BMI) below 17 kg/m\^2
6. Short bowel syndrome
7. Patients known to be pregnant or nursing
8. Patients on mechanical ventilation at home
9. NRS score lower than three
10. Patient readmitted to ICU after randomization to the EPaNIC trial.
11. Patient not critically ill on admission. (No clinical indication for central intravenous catheter or patient ready for oral nutrition on admission.)
C: Inclusion Criteria:

* Diagnosed with ARDS or has risk factors for ARDS; individuals will be considered at risk if they are critically ill and have trauma, sepsis, shock, pneumonia, inhalation injury, drug overdose, pancreatitis, or hypertransfusion
* Onset of ARDS must be between 7 and 28 days prior to study entry
* Since ARDS onset, bilateral infiltrates must have persisted and participants must have required continuous mechanical ventilation
D: Inclusion Criteria:

* 1 day of mechanical ventilation with an expectation of requiring ≥2 additional days of ICU stay in a Johns Hopkins Intensive Care Unit (ICU)

Exclusion Criteria:

* Unable to understand or speak English due to language barrier or cognitive impairment prior to admission
* Unable to independently transfer from bed to chair at baseline prior to hospital admission
* Known primary systemic neuromuscular disease (e.g. Guillian-Barre) at ICU admission
* Known intracranial process that is associated with localizing weakness (e.g. cerebral vascular accident) at ICU admission
* Transferred from another ICU outside of the Johns Hopkins system after \>4 consecutive days of mechanical ventilation
* Moribund (i.e. \>90% probability of patient mortality in the next 96 hours)
* Anticipated transfer to another ICU for care (e.g. awaiting organ transplantation and transfer to surgical ICU)
* Any pacemaker (e.g., cardiac, diaphragm) or implanted cardiac defibrillator
* Pregnancy
* Body mass index ≥35 kg/m2
* Any limitation in life support other than a sole no-CPR order
* Known or suspected malignancy in the legs
* Unable to treat or evaluate both lower extremities (e.g., bilateral amputation, bilateral skin lesions)
* ICU length of stay \>7 days prior to enrollment

Answer: A