Table 1.
Demographic characteristics and co-morbid conditions in 116 patients with acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease admitted to the medical intensive care unit
| Age (years) (mean ± SD) | 62.1 ± 9.8 |
| Gender | |
| Male | 102 |
| Female | 14 |
| Smoking (all males) | 22.3 ± 11.2 pack years |
| Duration of symptoms (years) (mean ± SD) | 7.6 ± 5.2 |
| COPD, GOLD stage* | |
| Moderate [No. (%)] | 25 (21.6) |
| Severe [No. (%)] | 55 (47.4) |
| Very severe [No. (%)] | 36 (31.0) |
| Co-morbid conditions | |
| Hypertension [No. (%)] | 40 (34.5) |
| Alcoholism [No. (%)] | 38 (32.8) |
| Type II diabetes mellitus [No. (%)] | 36 (31.0) † |
| Past pulmonary tuberculosis [No. (%)] | 33 (28.4) ‡ |
| Coronary artery disease [No. (%)] | 12 (10.3) |
| Chronic renal failure [No. (%)] | 10 (08.6) |
| Number of co-morbid illnesses | |
| 0 [No. (%)] | 35 (30.2) |
| 1 [No. (%)] | 53 (45.7) |
| 2 [No. (%)] | 18 (15.5) |
| 3 [No. (%)] | 07 (06.0) |
| 4 [No. (%)] | 03 (02.6) |
GOLD = Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (reference 1)
COPD = chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
* In all patients post-bronchodilator forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1)/forced vital capacity (FVC) was ≤ 0.7. Moderately severe COPD, FEV1 = 50 – 80% predicted; severe COPD, FEV1 = 30 – 50% predicted; very severe COPD = <30% predicted (reference 1)
† 3 patients had diabetic ketoacidosis and 5 patients had active pulmonary tuberculosis
‡ Clinical and radiographic evidence of past tuberculosis was present
More than one co-morbid conditions were present in several patients