[Community-acquired pneumonia in inpatients: mortality, comorbidity and risk classes].
BACKGROUND
It is necessary to determine what patients with community acquired pneumonia (CAP) are at highest risk of death and which characteristics allow such determination.


OBJECTIVE
To analyze the risk classes in the CAP. To verify what was the associated comorbidity and whether age, sex or residence area of inpatients with CAP increased the proportion of deceased patients.


METHODS
A total of 113 patients were studied (68 males and 45 females) and 15 died (13.3%). The mean age of the deceased patients was 82.5 years (standard error [SE]: 6.63 years) significantly higher than that in survivors (70.5 years, SE: 17.3 years). There were no significant differences concerning age or sex between the deceased patients and survivors belonging to the most severe class. Most patients had comorbidities (82 patients, 72.6%). Seventeen (15%) of the inpatients came from a nursing home, more frequently among the deceased (5 patients, 33%) than among survivors (12 patients, 12%), a statistically significant difference (p < 0.05).


CONCLUSIONS
No differences were observed between patients regarding age or sex, once patients were stratified by risk classes. There was a high proportion of concomitant diseases, and the mortality rate was higher among patients with some associated disease. In our series, patients from a nursing home had a higher mortality rate.
Ruiz de Oña Lacasta
J M
JM
Unidad de Neumología, Hospital Nuestra Señora del Prado, Talavera de la Reina, Toledo, Spain. jmruiz@separ.es
Gómez Fernández
M
M
Celdrán Gil
J
J
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D017714:Community-Acquired Infections / Q000453:epidemiology; D015897:Comorbidity; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D018410:Pneumonia, Bacterial / Q000453:epidemiology*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors