Prognostic factors of aspiration pneumonia in intensive care unit patients with pneumonia

Aspiration pneumonia (AP) is an infectious condition that arises as a result of the aspiration of oropharyngeal secretions colonized with infectious agents into the lower respiratory tract. Our study aimed to compare cases admitted to the intensive care unit with AP to other pneumonia cases, with the goal of identifying effective prognostic markers for hospitalization duration, morbidity, and mortality. Our study aimed to compare cases admitted to the intensive care unit with AP to other pneumonia cases, with the goal of identifying effective prognostic markers for hospitalization duration, morbidity and mortality. This study included all cases monitored in the Chest Diseases Intensive Care Unit of our hospital with a diagnosis of pneumonia between January 1, 2020 and January 1, 2022. It is an analytical, descriptive, and retrospective study. A case report form, including age, gender, BMI, medical history, and laboratory data, was completed for all cases. Cases with aspiration pneumonia were classified as Group 1, and pneumonia cases without aspiration pneumonia were classified as Group 2. Research data were analyzed using the SPSS 21.0 statistical software. In our study, there were 36 cases in Group 1 and 35 cases in Group 2. Among these cases, 51 (71.8%) were male. The rate of individuals with a BMI of 18.5 and above was 69.4% in Group 1 and 94.3% in Group 2, and this difference was significantly lower in Group 1. The proportion of residents in nursing homes and those with additional neurological diseases was significantly higher in Group 1. Fever complaints were significantly more common in Group 1. There was no significant difference in hospitalization duration and mortality between the two groups. It was observed that CURB-65, SOFA, CPIS scores at the time of admission, and the need for inotropic support were statistically higher in Group 1. In Group 1 cases, no significant correlation was found between hospitalization duration and pneumonia severity scores, mortality assessment scores, and laboratory data. However, when considering all cases in terms of hospitalization duration, positive correlations were observed with sputum/blood culture growth and high CURB-65 and CPIS scores. In our study, the worse prognostic indicators at the time of diagnosis for patients with aspiration pneumonia (AP), a condition that frequently occupies and challenges our daily practice, suggest that these cases present with more severe clinical manifestations and a greater need for intensive care compared to other pneumonias. However, the similar rates of hospitalization duration and mortality imply that the prognosis could be different when the disease is managed correctly. Therefore, the rapid and accurate management of AP cases may be crucial in reducing mortality and shortening hospital stays.