Table 1.
Baseline characteristics
| POCT (n=360) | Control (n=354) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age (years) | 63 (41–75) | 62 (44–74) | ||
| Sex | ||||
| Female | 183 (51%) | 185 (52%) | ||
| Male | 177 (49%) | 169 (48%) | ||
| Ethnic origin | ||||
| White British | 337 (94%) | 331 (94%) | ||
| Other | 23 (6%) | 23 (6%) | ||
| Current smoker | ||||
| Yes | 92 (26%) | 89 (25%) | ||
| No | 268 (74%) | 265 (75%) | ||
| Influenza vaccine* | ||||
| Yes | 206 (57%) | 208 (59%) | ||
| No | 151 (42%) | 143 (40%) | ||
| Duration of symptoms (days) | 4 (2–6) | 4 (3–5) | ||
| Antibiotics within 14 days† | ||||
| Yes | 90 (25%) | 91 (26%) | ||
| No | 270 (75%) | 263 (74%) | ||
| Antivirals within 14 days† | ||||
| Yes | 0 | 0 | ||
| No | 360 (100%) | 354 (100%) | ||
| Comorbidity | ||||
| Cardiovascular disease | 132 (37%) | 133 (38%) | ||
| Respiratory disease | 213 (59%) | 206 (58%) | ||
| Renal disease | 20 (6%) | 22 (6%) | ||
| Liver disease | 7 (2%) | 2 (1%) | ||
| Diabetes | 48 (13%) | 64 (18%) | ||
| Immunocompromised | 18 (5%) | 21 (6%) | ||
| Cancer | 23 (6%) | 25 (7%) | ||
| Observations | ||||
| Temperature (°C) | 36·9 (36·4–37·7) | 37·0 (36·4–37·8) | ||
| Temperature ≥38°C | 64 (18%) | 78 (22%) | ||
| Pulse rate (bpm) | 100 (85–110) | 100 (84–110) | ||
| Respiratory rate (bpm) | 23 (19–28) | 22 (18–26) | ||
| O2 saturations (%) | 96 (94–98) | 95 (93–97) | ||
| Supplementary O2 | 96 (27%) | 76 (21%) | ||
| BP (mm Hg) | ||||
| Systolic | 130 (118–149) | 133 (120–152) | ||
| Diastolic | 72 (63–81) | 72 (64–83) | ||
| Laboratory and radiology | ||||
| CRP (mg/L) | 40 (12–127) | 44 (13–99) | ||
| White cell count (×109 per L) | 10·8 (8·1–14·8) | 10·4 (8·0–14·0) | ||
| Neutrophils (×109 per L) | 8·4 (5·7–11·0) | 7·9 (5·5–11·1) | ||
| Chest X-ray done | ||||
| Yes | 346 (96%) | 340 (96%) | ||
| No | 14 (4%) | 14 (4%) | ||
| Final diagnosis | ||||
| Asthma | 62 (17%) | 57 (16%) | ||
| IECOPD | 81 (23%) | 83 (23%) | ||
| Pneumonia | 94 (26%) | 98 (28%) | ||
| Influenza-like illness/NPLRTI | 76 (21%) | 69 (19%) | ||
| Other‡ | 47 (13%) | 47 (13%) | ||
| Location of recruitment | ||||
| Emergency department | 134 (37%) | 147 (42%) | ||
| Acute medical unit | 226 (63%) | 207 (58%) | ||
Data are n (%) or median (IQR). POCT=point-of-care testing. bpm=beats per min. O2=oxygen. BP=blood pressure. CRP=C-reactive protein. IECOPD=infective exacerbation of COPD. NPLRTI=non-pneumonic lower respiratory tract infection.
*
Received vaccine for the current influenza season.
†
Received within 14 days before presentation to hospital.
‡
See appendix (p 1) for breakdown of individual clinical diagnoses.