Table 3. Clinical characteristics for the overall study population (N = 933,591).
| Characteristic | Sepsis biomarker use category | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| >1 PCT | 1 PCT | 0 PCT, ≥1 CRP, and/or lactate | No sepsis biomarkers | |
| Number of discharges | 34,245 (100) | 79,234 (100) | 617,913 (100) | 202,199 (100) |
| Year of hospital admission | ||||
| 2012 | 2935 (8.6) | 6991 (8.8) | 125,612 (20.3) | 58,894 (29.1) |
| 2013 | 5496 (16.0) | 13,351 (16.8) | 147,875 (23.9) | 53,604 (26.5) |
| 2014 | 10,196 (29.8) | 23,913 (30.2) | 165,820 (26.8) | 48,900 (24.2) |
| 2015 | 15,618 (45.6) | 34,979 (44.1) | 178,606 (28.9) | 40,801 (20.2) |
| Admission type | ||||
| Emergency | 29,955 (87.5) | 68,746 (86.8) | 543,635 (88.0) | 156,900 (77.6) |
| Trauma center/urgent | 3220 (9.4) | 8194 (10.3) | 55,908 (9.0) | 28,242 (14.0) |
| Elective | 994 (2.9) | 2071 (2.6) | 16,684 (2.7) | 16,058 (7.9) |
| Unknown | 76 (0.2) | 223 (0.3) | 1686 (0.3) | 999 (0.5) |
| APR-DRG severity of illness score | ||||
| Minor | 264 (0.8) | 1304 (1.6) | 13,889 (2.3) | 8320 (4.1) |
| Moderate | 3340 (9.7) | 12,119 (15.3) | 108,324 (17.5) | 52,716 (26.1) |
| Major | 11,766 (34.4) | 32,232 (40.7) | 247,271 (40.0) | 90,728 (44.9) |
| Extreme | 18,875 (55.1) | 33,579 (42.4) | 248,429 (40.2) | 50,435 (24.9) |
| APR-DRG risk of mortality score | ||||
| Minor | 1760 (5.1) | 6530 (8.2) | 63,448 (10.3) | 34,375 (17.0) |
| Moderate | 2941 (8.6) | 10,110 (12.8) | 89,894 (14.5) | 40,990 (20.3) |
| Major | 9753 (28.5) | 26,974 (34.0) | 206,401 (33.4) | 75,697 (37.4) |
| Extreme | 19,791 (57.8) | 35,620 (45.0) | 258,170 (41.8) | 51,137 (25.3) |
| Any sepsis antimicrobial use during hospital stay | ||||
| Yes | 34,124 (99.6) | 78,564 (99.1) | 609,037 (98.6) | 191,359 (94.6) |
| No | 121 (0.4) | 670 (0.9) | 8876 (1.4) | 10,840 (5.4) |
| Blood cultures ordered during hospital stay | ||||
| Yes | 33,258 (97.1) | 74,269 (93.7) | 592,053 (95.8) | 160,121 (79.2) |
| No | 987 (2.9) | 4965 (6.3) | 25,860 (4.2) | 42,078 (20.8) |
| ≥1 day of mechanical ventilation during hospital stay | ||||
| Yes | 9642 (28.2) | 14,760 (18.6) | 109,751 (17.8) | 13,688 (6.8) |
| No | 24,603 (71.8) | 64,474 (81.4) | 508,162 (82.2) | 188,511 (93.2) |
| ≥1 vasopressor order during hospital stay | ||||
| Yes | 3427 (10.0) | 5848 (7.4) | 39,145 (6.3) | 2763 (1.4) |
| No | 30,818 (90.0) | 73,386 (92.6) | 578,768 (93.7) | 199,436 (98.6) |
| ICU admission during hospital stay | ||||
| Yes | 20,756 (60.6) | 37,160 (46.9) | 265,539 (43.0) | 43,114 (21.3) |
| No | 13,489 (39.4) | 42,074 (53.1) | 352,374 (57.0) | 159,085 (78.7) |
APR-DRG, All Patients Refined Diagnosis-Related Group; CRP, C-reactive protein; ICU, intensive care unit; PCT, procalcitonin.
Data are presented as number (%) unless stated otherwise.
Differences between groups were statistically significant (p <0.001) for all variables.