Patient characteristics, symptoms, and signs in pneumonic patients and patients without pneumonia
| All patients (n = 364) | Pneumonia (n = 48) | Non-pneumonic LRTI (n = 316) | P-value | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age in years, median (range) | 50 (18–94) | 61 (22–88) | 48 (18–94) | 0.001 |
| Sex, male | 179 (49) | 28 (58) | 151 (48) | 0.215 |
| Smoking habits | ||||
| Current smoker | 165 (45) | 16 (33) | 149 (47) | 0.087 |
| Former smoker | 93 (26) | 15 (31) | 78 (25) | 0.375 |
| Never smoked | 106 (29) | 17 (35) | 89 (28) | 0.310 |
| Excessive consumption of alcohola | 11 (3) | 2 (4) | 9 (3) | 0.644 |
| Immunisation status | ||||
| Influenza vaccination | 68/360 (19) | 17 (35) | 51/312 (16) | 0.005 |
| Pneumococcal vaccination | 23/355 (6) | 5/46 (11) | 18/309 (6) | 0.199 |
| Underlying diseaseb | 132 (36) | 21 (44) | 111 (35) | 0.269 |
| Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease | 33 (9) | 10 (21) | 23 (7) | 0.006 |
| Cardiac illness | 31 (9) | 5 (10) | 26 (8) | 0.581 |
| Karnofsky performance status | ||||
| Score ≥80 prior to the current LRTIc | 335 (92) | 43 (90) | 292 (92) | 0.564 |
| Symptoms | ||||
| Coughd | 355 (98) | 47 (98) | 308 (97) | 1.000 |
| Dyspnoead | 263 (72) | 37 (77) | 226 (72) | 0.492 |
| Sputum productiond | 295 (81) | 33 (69) | 262 (83) | 0.028 |
| Chest pain | 234 (64) | 30 (63) | 204 (65) | 0.872 |
| Abnormal auscultation | 129/352 (37) | 16/47 (34) | 113/305 (37) | 0.747 |
Except for age, characteristics are expressed as numbers (%). Denominator shown when data were not available for all patients.
↵a Excessive alcohol consumption: >24 g/day (women) and >36 g/day (men).
↵b Underlying disease: active cancer or cancer diagnosed within 1 year, n = 1; cardiovascular illness (any cardiac illness or hypertension), n = 76; respiratory illness (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or asthma), n = 55; cerebrovascular illness (former stroke or transitory cerebral ischemia), n = 11; chronic renal or liver dysfunction, n = 4; diabetes, n = 25; other, n = 10.
↵c Karnofsky performance status score ≥80 = able to care for self independently.
↵d New or increased. LRTI = lower respiratory tract infection.