Table 1.
Baseline characteristics of Zambian patients with severe sepsis
| SSSP n=53 |
Control n=56 |
p | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Age, years, mean (SD) | 35.2 (1.3) | 34.8 (1.4) | 0.85 |
|
| |||
| Male, n (%) | 28 (52.8) | 30 (53.6) | 0.94 |
|
| |||
| Admission Vital Signs, mean (SD) | |||
| SBP, mmHg | 102.6 (21.4) | 101.6 (24.2) | 0.83 |
| DBP, mmHg | 62.4 (14.4) | 65.2 (17.2) | 0.35 |
| MAP, mmHg | 75.8 (15.4) | 77.3 (18.8) | 0.64 |
| RR, breaths/min | 38.2 (10.9) | 37.7 (11.2) | 0.81 |
| HR, beats/min | 119.2 (15.8) | 122.9 (22.3) | 0.32 |
| Temp, degrees C | 37.3 (1.5) | 37.9 (1.7) | 0.07 |
|
| |||
| GCS, median (IQR) | 14 (11-15) | 14 (10-15) | 0.76 |
|
| |||
| HIV positive, n (%) | 42 (79.2) | 46 (82.1) | 0.70 |
| CD4 count, median (IQR)+ | 40 (17-107) | 70 (24-109) | 0.41 |
| On ARVs, n (% of HIV positive) | 18 (42.9) | 16 (35.6) | 0.49 |
|
| |||
| Suspected site of infection, n (%) | 0.86 | ||
| Pulmonary | 31 (58.5) | 32 (57.1) | |
| Central nervous system | 19 (35.8) | 15 (26.8) | |
| Abdomen | 3 (5.7) | 4 (7.1) | |
| Other ^ | 6 (11.3) | 7 (12.5) | |
|
| |||
| Chief complaint, n (%) | 0.62 | ||
| Dyspnea | 13 (24.5) | 15 (26.8) | |
| Altered mentation | 9 (17.0) | 10 (17.9) | |
| Cough | 9 (17.0) | 8 (14.3) | |
| Headache | 7 (13.2) | 10 (17.9) | |
| Weakness/fatigue | 10 (18.9) | 4 (7.1) | |
| Abdominal pain | 3 (5.7) | 5 (8.9) | |
| Other ^ | 2 (3.8) | 4 (7.1) | |
|
| |||
|
Duration of chief complaint, days,
median (IQR) |
7 (4-30) | 14 (3-30) | 0.81 |
|
| |||
|
Duration of any symptoms*, days,
median (IQR) |
14 (7-30) | 30 (14-60) | 0.26 |
|
| |||
| SAPS3 score, mean (SD) | 59.0 (1.6) | 56.3(1.5) | 0.23 |
|
| |||
| APACHE II score, mean (SD) | 17.8 (0.8) | 17.9 (0.9) | 0.95 |
SSSP=Simplified Severe Sepsis Protocol, SD=Standard deviation, SBP=Systolic blood pressure, DBP=Diastolic blood pressure, MAP=Mean arterial pressure, RR=Respiratory rate, HR=Heart rate, Temp=Temperature, GCS=Glasgow coma scale, ARVs=Antiretrovirals, SAPS3=Simplified Acute Physiology Score-3
^
Other chief complaints included fever (3), diarrhea (1), vomiting (1), and seizure (1)
*
Symptoms include inability to walk or any symptom listed under chief complaint