Table 1.
Clinical characteristics of the patients
| Factors, medians (IQR) | Total cohort (n = 225) | Culture positive (n = 76) | Culture negative (n = 149) | P value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age, years | 65.00 (52.00–76.00) | 66.00 (56.00–76.00) | 64.0 (49.5–76.0) | 0.215 |
| Gender | ||||
| Male | 170 (75.6%) | 54 (71.1%) | 116 (77.9%) | 0.566 |
| Female | 55 (24.4%) | 22 (28.9%) | 33 (22.1%) | 0.327 |
| Location | ||||
| Right | 126 (56.0%) | 40 (52.6%) | 86 (57.7%) | 0.635 |
| Left | 98 (43.6%) | 35 (46.1%) | 63 (42.3%) | 0.670 |
| Bilateral | 1 (0.4%) | 1 (1.3%) | 0 (0.0%) | 0.317 |
| Phase | ||||
| II | 171 (76.0%) | 60 (78.9%) | 111 (74.5%) | 0.747 |
| III | 54 (24.0%) | 16 (21.1%) | 38 (25.5%) | 0.466 |
| Comorbidity | ||||
| Malignancy | 61 (27.1%) | 24 (31.6%) | 37 (24.8%) | 0.354 |
| DM | 82 (36.4%) | 34 (44.7%) | 48 (32.2%) | 0.138 |
| HTN | 134 (59.6%) | 51 (67.1%) | 83 (55.7%) | 0.321 |
| Liver cirrhosis | 19 (8.4%) | 7 (9.2%) | 12 (8.1%) | 0.808 |
| ESRD | 25 (11.1%) | 11 (14.5%) | 14 (9.4%) | 0.221 |
| CHF | 21 (9.3%) | 12 (15.8%) | 9 (6.0%) | 0.033 |
| COPD | 54 (24.0%) | 21 (27.6%) | 33 (22.1%) | 0.396 |
| Laboratory data | ||||
| WBC (103/μL) | 14.60 (11.05–19.30) | 13.30 (9.45–18.10) | 14.90 (11.90–19.55) | 0.075 |
| ANC (103/μL) | 12.31 (9.10–16.55) | 11.63 (7.66–16.30) | 12.73 (9.73–16.61) | 0.189 |
| Pleural data | ||||
| Pleural pH (≦ 7.2) | 112 (57.1%) | 39 (59.1%) | 73 (56.2%) | 0.780 |
| Pleural glucose (≦ 40 mg/dL) | 112 (54.1%) | 34 (48.6%) | 78 (56.9%) | 0.437 |
| Pleural LDH (≧ 1000 IU/L) | 152 (73.8%) | 51 (72.9%) | 101 (74.3%) | 0.934 |
| PreOP ABX usage (days) | 3.00 (1.00–6.00) | 4.00 (2.00–7.75) | 2.00 (1.00–5.00) | 0.014 |
| PreOP chest tube drainage duration | 0.00 (0.00–2.00) | 0.00 (0.00–4.00) | 0.00 (0.00–5.00) | 0.143 |
| PostOP chest tube drainage duration | 10.00 (7.00–17.00) | 13.00 (8.00–26.75) | 9.00 (7.00–16.00) | < 0.001 |
| Chest tube drainage duration | 11.00 (7.00–19.00) | 14.50 (9.00–28.00) | 10.00 (7.00–16.00) | < 0.001 |
| Length of ICU admission | 7.00 (0.00–14.00) | 13.00 (4.25–23.75) | 4.00 (0.00–12.00) | < 0.001 |
| Length of hospital stay | 19.00 (12.00–32.00) | 27.00 (17.00–44.75) | 16.00 (11.00–30.00) | < 0.001 |
| Hospital mortality | 36 (16.0%) | 20 (26.3%) | 16 (10.7%) | 0.014 |
| Mortality in 30 days | 19 (8.4%) | 9 (11.8%) | 10 (6.7%) | 0.191 |
IQR: interquartile range; DM: diabetes mellitus; HTN: hypertension; ERDS: end-stage renal disease; CHF: congestive heart failure; COPD: chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; WBC: white blood cell; ANC: absolute neutrophil count; LDH: lactate dehydrogenase; OP: operative; ABX: antibiotics; ICU: intensive care unit