title: Admission rate and characteristics of hospitalized systemic connective tissue disorders: analysis from a nationwide Thailand healthcare database.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Reports of hospitalized systemic connective tissue disorders (SCNTD) are mostly disease-specific reports from institutional databases.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To clarify the admission rate, disease determination, hospital mortality rate, length of stay and hospital charges among hospitalized patients diagnosed with SCNTD.
  
  
  METHODS
  The data were extracted from the 2010 national database of hospitalized patients provided by the Thai Health Coding Center, Bureau of Policy and Strategy, Ministry of Public Health, Thailand. Patients over 18 years having International Classification of Diseases (ICD)-10 codes for a primary diagnosis related to SCNTD were included.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There were 6861 admissions coded as disorders related to SCNTD during the fiscal year 2010. The admission rate was 141 per 100,000 admissions. Among these, systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) was the most common, followed by systemic sclerosis (SSc) and dermatomyositis/polymyositis (DM-PM). The overall mean length of hospital stay was 6.8 days. Small vessel vasculitis and Sjögren syndrome had the longest and the shortest hospital stays respectively (14.5 vs. 5.3 days). Hospital charges were highest among systemic vasculitis and DM-PM patients.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The admission rate for SCNTD in Thailand was 141 per 100,000 admissions among which SLE was the most common. Overall hospital mortality was 4.1%. Although a lower prevalence was found among systemic vasculitis, it had a higher mortality rate, longer length of stay and greater therapeutic cost.
authors: Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen, Thailand.
authors: Chingching
authors: C
authors: Foocharoen
authors: Yupa
authors: Y
authors: Thavornpitak
authors: Ajanee
authors: A
authors: Mahakkanukrauh
authors: Siraphop
authors: S
authors: Suwannaroj
authors: Ratanavadee
authors: R
authors: Nanagara
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D003240:Connective Tissue Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000628:therapy*; D016208:Databases, Factual; D005260:Female; D017052:Hospital Mortality; D006760:Hospitalization / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D007902:Length of Stay; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015995:Prevalence; D013785:Thailand / Q000453:epidemiology