title: Relationship Between Upper Respiratory Tract Influenza Test Result and Clinical Outcomes Among Critically Ill Influenza Patients.
abstract: Among critically ill patients with lower respiratory tract (LRT)-confirmed influenza, we retrospectively observed worse 28-day clinical outcomes in upper respiratory tract (URT)-negative versus URT-positive subjects. This finding may reflect disease progression and highlights the need for influenza testing of both URT and LRT specimens to improve diagnostic yield and possibly inform prognosis.
authors.affiliation: Medical Practice Evaluation Center; Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine; Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine; Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center; Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts.
authors.forename: Krishna P
authors.initials: KP
authors.lastname: Reddy
authors.affiliation: Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine; Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts.
authors.forename: Ednan K
authors.initials: EK
authors.lastname: Bajwa
authors.affiliation: Medical Practice Evaluation Center; Division of General Internal Medicine; Biostatistics Center; Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts.
authors.forename: Robert A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Parker
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology; Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts.
authors.forename: Andrew B
authors.initials: AB
authors.lastname: Onderdonk
authors.affiliation: Medical Practice Evaluation Center; Division of General Internal Medicine; Division of Infectious Disease, Massachusetts General Hospital; Division of Infectious Disease, Brigham and Women's Hospital; Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts.
authors.forename: Rochelle P
authors.initials: RP
authors.lastname: Walensky
keywords: critically ill; influenza diagnosis; lower respiratory tract; upper respiratory tract