Initial Factors Influencing Duration of Hospital Stay in Adult Patients With Peritonsillar Abscess

To review cases of peritonsillar abscess and investigate the initial clinical factors that may influence the duration of hospitalization. To determine the predictive factors of prolonged hospital stay in adult patients with peritonsillar abscess. Subjects were adults hospitalized with peritonsillar abscess. We retrospectively reviewed 377 medical records from 1990 to 2013 in a tertiary medical center in southern Taiwan. The association between clinical characteristics and the length of hospital stay was analyzed with independent -test, univariate linear regression and multiple linear regression analysis. The mean duration of hospitalization was 6.2±6.0 days. With univariate linear regression, a prolonged hospital stay was associated with several variables, including female gender, older ages, nonsmoking status, diabetes mellitus, hypertension, band forms in white blood cell (WBC) counts, and lower hemoglobin levels. With multiple linear regression analysis, four independent predictors of hospital stay were noted: years of age (