Outcomes of very elderly (≥ 80 years) critical-ill patients in a medical intensive care unit of a tertiary hospital in Korea

BACKGROUND/AIMS: This study evaluated clinical characteristics and outcomes in very elderly (≥ 80 years of age) critical-ill patients admitted to a medical intensive care unit (MICU) in a regional single tertiary hospital. METHODS: We retrospectively evaluated prospectively collected data in the MICU for the period of December 2011 to May 2014. Patients were divided into ≥ 80 and < 80 years of age and clinical characteristics and outcomes were compared among these patients. RESULTS: A total of 468 patients were evaluated and 102 patients (21.7%) were ≥ 80 years of age. Overall mortality was 38.5% in the intensive care unit (ICU) and 44.7% in the hospital. There was no significant difference in ICU and in-hospital mortalities between those ≥ 80 years and those < 80 years (34.9% vs. 39.5% for ICU mortality; 40.6% vs. 45.9% for in-hospital mortality). Lengths of ICU and hospital stays were significantly longer in patients < 80 years compared to patients ≥ 80 years (10.57 ± 19.96 days vs. 8.19 ± 8.78 days for ICU stay; 27.95 ± 39.62 days vs. 18.17 ± 15.44 days for hospital stay). The rate of withholding intensive care in hospital stay over 48 hours was significantly higher in patients ≥ 80 years compared to patients < 80 years (22.9% vs. 11.8%). In multivariate analysis, weaning failure and withdrawal or withholding of intensive care in ICU was significantly related to death in patients with age ≥ 80. CONCLUSIONS: Clinical outcomes were not significantly different for very elderly critical-ill patients compared to those of their younger counterparts in the MICU in this study.