title: Intensive care unit admission has minimal impact on long-term mortality.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To measure the association between intensive care unit (ICU) admission and both hospital and long-term mortality, separate from the effect of hospital admission alone.
  
  
  METHODS
  Retrospective cohort study.
  
  
  METHODS
  All hospitals in British Columbia, Canada, during 3 fiscal years, 1994 to 1996.
  
  
  METHODS
  A total of 27,103 patients admitted to ICU and 41,308 (5% random sample) patients admitted to hospital but not to ICU.
  
  
  METHODS
  None.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Although ICU admission was an important factor associated with hospital mortality (odds ratio: 9.12; 95% confidence interval: 8.34-9.96), the association between ICU admission and mortality after discharge was relatively minimal (hazard ratio: 1.21; 95% confidence interval: 1.17-1.27) and was completely overshadowed by the effect of age, gender, and diagnosis.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  After controlling for the effect of hospital admission, admission to ICU has minimal independent effect on mortality after discharge.
authors: Centre for Health Evaluation and Outcome Sciences, St. Paul's Hospital and University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada.
authors: Sean P
authors: SP
authors: Keenan
authors: Peter
authors: P
authors: Dodek
authors: Keith
authors: K
authors: Chan
authors: Robert S
authors: RS
authors: Hogg
authors: Kevin J P
authors: KJ
authors: Craib
authors: Aslam H
authors: AH
authors: Anis
authors: John J
authors: JJ
authors: Spinelli
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001955:British Columbia / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D017052:Hospital Mortality; D006801:Humans; D007362:Intensive Care Units / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012306:Risk; D020379:Risk Adjustment; D016019:Survival Analysis; D015996:Survival Rate