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Critical Care
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Open Access 01-12-2023 | Septicemia | Research

Influence of gender on age-associated in-hospital mortality in patients with sepsis and septic shock: a prospective nationwide multicenter cohort study

Authors: Ryoung-Eun Ko, Danbee Kang, Juhee Cho, Soo Jin Na, Chi Ryang Chung, Sung Yoon Lim, Yeon Joo Lee, Sunghoon Park, Dong Kyu Oh, Su Yeon Lee, Mi Hyeon Park, Haein Lee, Chae-Man Lim, Gee Young Suh, the Korean Sepsis Alliance (KSA) investigators

Published in: Critical Care | Issue 1/2023

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Abstract

Background

Numerous epidemiological studies investigating gender-dependent clinical outcomes in sepsis have shown conflicting evidence. This study aimed to investigate the effect of gender on in-hospital mortality due to sepsis according to age group.

Methods

This study used data from the Korean Sepsis Alliance, an ongoing nationwide prospective multicenter cohort from 19 participating hospitals in South Korea. All adult patients diagnosed with sepsis in the emergency departments of the participating hospitals between September 2019 and December 2021 were included in the analysis. Clinical characteristics and outcomes were compared between male and female. Eligible patients were stratified by age into 19–50 years, 50–80 years, and ≥ 80 years old individuals.

Results

During the study period, 6442 patients were included in the analysis, and 3650 (56.7%) were male. The adjusted odds ratio (OR) [95% confidence interval (CI)] for in-hospital mortality for male compared with female was 1.15 (95% CI = 1.02–1.29). Interestingly, in the age 19–50 group, the risk of in-hospital mortality for males was significantly lower than that of females [0.57 (95% CI = 0.35–0.93)]. For female, the risk of death remained relatively stable until around age 80 (P for linearity = 0.77), while in males, there was a linear increase in the risk of in-hospital death until around age 80 (P for linearity < 0.01). Respiratory infection (53.8% vs. 37.4%, p < 0.01) was more common in male, whereas urinary tract infection (14.7% vs. 29.8%, p < 0.01) was more common in female. For respiratory infection, male had significantly lower in-hospital mortality than female in the age 19–50 groups (adjusted OR = 0.29, 95% CI = 0.12–0.69).

Conclusions

Gender may influence age-associated sepsis outcomes. Further studies are needed to replicate our findings and fully understand the interaction of gender and age on the outcomes of patients with sepsis.
Appendix
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Metadata
Title
Influence of gender on age-associated in-hospital mortality in patients with sepsis and septic shock: a prospective nationwide multicenter cohort study
Authors
Ryoung-Eun Ko
Danbee Kang
Juhee Cho
Soo Jin Na
Chi Ryang Chung
Sung Yoon Lim
Yeon Joo Lee
Sunghoon Park
Dong Kyu Oh
Su Yeon Lee
Mi Hyeon Park
Haein Lee
Chae-Man Lim
Gee Young Suh
the Korean Sepsis Alliance (KSA) investigators
Publication date
01-12-2023
Publisher
BioMed Central
Published in
Critical Care / Issue 1/2023
Electronic ISSN: 1364-8535
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1186/s13054-023-04515-5

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