Primary care consultations after hospitalisation for pneumonia: a large population-based cohort study

BACKGROUND: Up to 70% of patients report ongoing symptoms 4 weeks after hospitalisation for pneumonia; the impact on primary care is poorly understood. AIM: To investigate the frequency of primary care consultations after hospitalisation for pneumonia, and the reasons for consultation. DESIGN AND SETTING: A population-based cohort study in England using a UK primary care database of anonymised medical records (Clinical Practice Research Datalink [CPRD]) linked to Hospital Episode Statistics (HES). METHOD: Adults with the first International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision (ICD-10) code for pneumonia (J12–J18) recorded in HES between July 2002 and June 2017 were included. Primary care consultation within 30 days of discharge was identified as the recording of any medical Read code (excluding administration-related codes) in CPRD. Competing-risks regression analyses were conducted to determine the predictors of consultation and antibiotic use at consultation; death and readmission were competing events. Reasons for consultation were examined. RESULTS: Of 56 396 adults, 55.9% (n = 31 542) consulted primary care within 30 days of hospital discharge. The rate of consultation was highest within 7 days (4.7 per 100 person–days). The strongest predictor for consultation was a higher number of primary care consultations in the year before index admission (adjusted subhazard ratio [sHR] 8.98, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 6.42 to 12.55). The most common reason for consultation was for a respiratory disorder (40.7%, n = 12 840), 11.8% for pneumonia specifically. At consultation, 31.1% (n = 9823) received further antibiotics. Penicillins (41.6%, n = 5753/13 829) and macrolides (21.9%, n = 3029/13 829) were the most common antibiotics prescribed. CONCLUSION: Following hospitalisation for pneumonia, a significant proportion of patients consulted primary care within 30 days, highlighting the morbidity experienced by patients during recovery from pneumonia.