Table 3.
Comparison of patient characteristics, clinical interventions and processes, and outcomes between the two patient subgroups identified in causal forests analysis.
| Cluster 1 (n = 54067) | Cluster 2 (n = 6750) | P value | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Age, mean (SD) | 61 (19) | 68 (15) | <0.001 |
| Gender, n (%) | <0.001 | ||
| Male | 25654 (47) | 3473 (51) | |
| Female | 28413 (53) | 3277 (49) | |
| Race, n (%) | 0.132 | ||
| Black | 21032 (39) | 2588 (38) | |
| White | 26807 (50) | 3329 (49) | |
| Other | 6228 (11) | 833 (12) | |
| Number of comorbidities, median (IQR) | 4 (1–7) | 4 (1–7) | <0.001 |
| Elixhauser comorbidities, n (%) | |||
| Congestive heart failure | 11164 (21) | 1617 (24) | <0.001 |
| Hypertension | 30325 (56) | 4136 (61) | <0.001 |
| Chronic pulmonary disease | 10900 (20) | 1290 (19) | 0.042 |
| Diabetes mellitus | 15513 (29) | 2355 (35) | <0.001 |
| Renal failure | 10909 (20) | 1418 (21) | 0.109 |
| Liver disease | 4752 (9) | 837 (12) | <0.001 |
| Malignancy | 11795 (22) | 1640 (24) | <0.001 |
| Infection site, n (%) | |||
| Pulmonary | 17076 (32) | 2517 (37) | <0.001 |
| Gastrointestinal | 6045 (11) | 1070 (16) | <0.001 |
| Genitourinary | 14396 (27) | 1922 (28) | 0.001 |
| Skin and soft tissue | 12239 (23) | 854 (13) | <0.001 |
| Critical care interventions by 6 hours, n (%) | |||
| High flow nasal cannula | 112 (0.2) | 47 (0.7) | 0.001 |
| Non-invasive positive pressure ventilation | 1090 (2) | 329 (5) | <0.001 |
| Mechanical ventilation | 1942 (4) | 792 (12) | <0.001 |
| Vasoactives | 1148 (2) | 528 (8) | <0.001 |
| SOFA at 1 hour, median (IQR) | 1 (0–3) | 3 (1–4) | <0.001 |
| Initial lactate value, median (IQR) | 1.5 (1.1–2.1) | 3.6 (3.0–4.8) | <0.001 |
| Time to first lactate, median (IQR) | 1.5 (0.9–2.5) | 1.18 (0.7–2.0) | <0.001 |
| Admitted to ICU from ED, n (%) | 7838 (15) | 2783 (41) | <0.001 |
| Ever developed septic shock, n (%) | 2202 (4) | 1157 (17) | <0.001 |
| Delay periods in hours, median (IQR) | |||
| OD | 2.6 (1.3–5.0) | 2.0 (1.0–4.1) | <0.001 |
| DD | 0.7 (0.3–1.3) | 0.6 (0.3–1.3) | 0.004 |
| CD | 3.5 (2.0–6.4) | 2.9 (1.7–5.4) | <0.001 |
| LOS in days, median (IQR) | 4.0 (2.3–7.0) | 5.3 (3.0–9.4) | <0.001 |
| Mortality, n (%) | 2206 (4) | 1039 (15) | <0.001 |
OD = Order Delay; DD = delivery delay; CD = cumulative delay; SD = standard deviation; IQR = interquartile range; SOFA = Sequential Organ Failure Assessment; ICU = intensive care unit; ED = emergency department; LOS = length of stay.