Table 1.
Patient characteristics overall and according to study site
| All patients | Swiss | US | French | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| n = | 7132 | 4579 | 1000 | 1553 |
| Sociodemographics | ||||
| Age, median (IQR) | 62 (46, 76) | 63 (47, 76) | 69 (55, 81) | 55 (38, 69) |
| Female gender, n (%) | 3301 (46.7 %) | 2046 (44.7 %) | 500 (50.0 %) | 755 (50.7 %) |
| Clinical presentation at ED admission, median (IQR) | ||||
| Blood pressure diastolic (mmHg) | 80 (70, 90) | 81 (71, 91) | 77.5 (67, 89) | 79 (70, 90) |
| Blood pressure systolic (mmHg) | 137 (121, 154) | 138 (122, 155) | 141 (121, 163) | 133 (119, 149) |
| Confusion, n (%) | 522 (7.3 %) | 453 (9.9 %) | 40 (4.0 %) | 29 (1.9 %) |
| Pulse (bpm) | 83 (71, 97) | 82 (70, 95) | 82 (71, 98) | 86 (74, 99) |
| Respiratory rate (breaths/min) | 18 (18, 20) | 32 (24, 36) | 18 (18, 20) | 21 (18, 25) |
| SpO2 (%) | 96.8 (94, 98) | 96 (94, 97) | 97 (95, 99) | 98 (96, 99) |
| Temperature (°C), | 36.8 (36.4, 37.2) | 36.9 (36.6, 37.4) | 36.5 (36.1, 36.8) | 36.7 (36.4, 37) |
| Main symptom at ED admission, n (%) | ||||
| Diarrhea, vomitus, dysuria | 495 (6.9 %) | 288 (6.3 %) | 95 (9.5 %) | 112 (7.2 %) |
| Fever | 343 (4.8 %) | 254 (5.5 %) | 15 (1.5 %) | 74 (4.8 %) |
| Gastrointestinal bleeding | 199 (2.8 %) | 140 (3.1 %) | 28 (2.8 %) | 31 (2.0 %) |
| Neurological symptoms | 1379 (19.3 %) | 1138 (24.9 %) | 78 (7.8 %) | 163 (10.5 %) |
| Nonthoracic pain | 1217 (17.1 %) | 682 (14.9 %) | 103 (10.3 %) | 432 (27.8 %) |
| Respiratory symptoms | 948 (13.3 %) | 526 (11.5 %) | 220 (22.0 %) | 202 (13.0 %) |
| Thoracic pain | 1038 (14.6 %) | 690 (15.1 %) | 153 (15.3 %) | 195 (12.6 %) |
| Worsening of general condition | 837 (11.7 %) | 258 (5.6 %) | 308 (30.8 %) | 271 (17.5 %) |
| Other symptom | 676 (9.5 %) | 603 (13.2 %) | 0 (0.0 %) | 73 (4.7 %) |
| Main diagnosis, n (%) | ||||
| Cancer | 297 (4.2 %) | 234 (5.1 %) | 29 (2.9 %) | 34 (2.2 %) |
| Cardiovascular | 1732 (24.3 %) | 1003 (21.9 %) | 413 (41.3 %) | 316 (20.3 %) |
| Gastrointestinal | 896 (12.6 %) | 503 (11.0 %) | 92 (9.2 %) | 301 (19.4 %) |
| Infection | 896 (12.6 %) | 657 (14.3 %) | 49 (4.9 %) | 190 (12.2 %) |
| Metabolic | 238 (3.3 %) | 62 (1.4 %) | 56 (5.6 %) | 120 (7.7 %) |
| Neurological | 1569 (22.0 %) | 1150 (25.1 %) | 160 (16.0 %) | 259 (16.7 %) |
| Pulmonary | 471 (6.6 %) | 169 (3.7 %) | 158 (15.8 %) | 144 (9.3 %) |
| Other | 1033 (14.5 %) | 801 (17.5 %) | 43 (4.3 %) | 189 (12.2 %) |
| Comorbidities, n (%) | ||||
| Cancer | 968 (13.6 %) | 678 (14.8 %) | 79 (7.9 %) | 211 (13.6 %) |
| Chronic renal failure | 872 (12.2 %) | 694 (15.2 %) | 78 (7.8 %) | 100 (6.4 %) |
| Congestive heart failure | 487 (6.8 %) | 286 (6.2 %) | 118 (11.8 %) | 83 (5.3 %) |
| COPD | 359 (5.0 %) | 229 (5.0 %) | 51 (5.1 %) | 79 (5.1 %) |
| Coronary heart disease | 838 (11.7 %) | 557 (12.2 %) | 107 (10.7 %) | 174 (11.2 %) |
| Dementia | 223 (3.1 %) | 147 (3.2 %) | 67 (6.7 %) | 9 (0.6 %) |
| Diabetes | 1088 (15.3 %) | 681 (14.9 %) | 224 (22.4 %) | 183 (11.8 %) |
| History of stroke | 566 (7.9 %) | 456 (10.0 %) | 5 (0.5 %) | 105 (6.8 %) |
| Hypertension | 2795 (39.2 %) | 1920 (41.9 %) | 479 (47.9 %) | 396 (25.5 %) |
| Substance abuse | 460 (6.4 %) | 303 (6.6 %) | 52 (5.2 %) | 105 (6.8 %) |
| Initial blood biomarkers, median (IQR) | ||||
| Copeptin, (pmol/L) | 10.74 (4.54, 38.90) | 11.60 (4.70, 43.80) | 15.02 (5.70, 59.42) | 7.63 (3.95, 19.21) |
| Creatinine (micromol/L) | 81.0 (67.0, 103.0) | 85.0 (70.0, 106.0) | 79.6 (70.7, 106.1) | 67.0 (55.0, 84.0) |
| Glucose (mmol/L) | 6.1 (5.3, 7.5) | 6.2 (5.4, 7.5) | 6.3 (5.3, 8.2) | 5.8 (5.2, 6.9) |
| Hemoglobin (G/L) | 13.6 (12.1, 14.8) | 13.7 (12.2, 14.9) | 12.9 (11.4, 14.4) | 13.7 (12.4, 14.8) |
| PCT (ug/L) | 0.08 (0.06, 0.13) | 0.08 (0.06, 0.13) | 0.09 (0.06, 0.15) | 0.08 (0.06, 0.13) |
| ProADM (nmol/L) | 0.79 (0.57, 1.24) | 0.81 (0.60, 1.27) | 0.98 (0.70, 1.62) | 0.59 (0.45, 0.88) |
| Sodium (mmol/L) | 139 (137, 140) | 139 (137, 141) | 138 (136, 140) | 138 (137, 140) |
| WBC (G/L) | 8.4 (6.6, 10.9) | 8.5 (6.7, 11.0) | 8.3 (6.4, 11) | 8.1 (6.3, 10.8) |
| Initial triage score, n (%) | ||||
| No emergency | 774 (11.1 %) | 638 (14.2 %) | 0 (0.0 %) | 136 (9.1 %) |
| Within 90 minutes | 1746 (25.1 %) | 1030 (23.0 %) | 61 (6.1 %) | 655 (43.9 %) |
| Within 30 minutes | 3030 (43.5 %) | 1783 (39.8 %) | 693 (69.3 %) | 554 (37.2 %) |
| Within 10 minutes | 1256 (18.0 %) | 910 (20.3 %) | 219 (21.9 %) | 127 (8.5 %) |
| Immediate treatment needed | 163 (2.3 %) | 117 (2.6 %) | 27 (2.7 %) | 19 (1.3 %) |
| Patient outcomes, n (%) | ||||
| Site of care, n (%) | ||||
| Outpatient treatment | 1555 (27.2 %) | 637 (19.8 %) | 0 (0.0 %) | 918 (61.6 %) |
| Length of stay, mean (SD) | 6.0 (6.1) | 5.7 (5.1) | 5.0 (5.3) | 9.5 (9.5) |
| Location after hospital/ED discharge, n (%) | ||||
| Home | 5983 (83.9 %) | 3796 (82.9 %) | 723 (72.3 %) | 1464 (94.3 %) |
| Other institution | 504 (7.1 %) | 435 (9.5 %) | 61 (6.1 %) | 8 (0.5 %) |
| Rehabilitation | 320 (4.5 %) | 207 (4.5 %) | 50 (5.0 %) | 63 (4.1 %) |
| Other | 325 (4.6 %) | 141 (3.1 %) | 166 (16.6 %) | 18 (1.2 %) |
| Outcomes within 30 days, n (%) | ||||
| Intensive care unit admission | 453 (6.4 %) | 181 (4.0 %) | 153 (15.3 %) | 119 (7.7 %) |
| Inhospital mortality | 188 (2.6 %) | 136 (3.0 %) | 21 (2.1 %) | 31 (2.0 %) |
| 30-day mortality | 331 (4.6 %) | 252 (5.5 %) | 45 (4.5 %) | 34 (2.2 %) |
| Unplanned hospital readmission | 590 (8.3 %) | 311 (6.8 %) | 184 (18.4 %) | 95 (6.1 %) |
IQR interquartile range, ED emergency department, COPD chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, PCT procalcitonin, ProADM pro-adrenomedullin, WBC white blood cell count, SD standard deviation