Analysis of factors affecting prolonged hospitalizations in elderly patients with community-acquired pneumonia

To determine the factors involved in prolonged hospital stay of elderly patients (over 60 years old) with community-acquired pneumonia (CAP), we investigated: (1) the age, (2) underlying diseases, (3) severity of pneumonia, and (4) length of hospital stay etc. of such cases at a 19-bed local facility. Of the 30 elderly patients with CAP, 20 had no underlying diseases (Group A). The mean length of hospital stay for these patients was about 10 days (mean age 69.1 years). The other 10 patients examined had some chronic underlying diseases, and these patients were assigned to Group B. The mean length of hospital stay in this group was 17 days (mean age was 71.2 years). The finding that the mean length of hospital stay was significantly shorter in Group A than in Group B indicates that prolonged stay of elderly patients with CAP is associated with the presence of underlying chronic diseases. When the severity of pneumonia of patients with underlying chronic diseases increased by one level according to the Guidelines of the Japanese Respiratory Society (2000), the number of patients with moderate pneumonia was 13, and the mean length of hospital stay was 16 days. The number of patients with mild pneumonia was 17, and the mean length of hospital stay was 10 days. Thus, the length of hospitalization was significantly shorter in the mild group than in the moderate group.