Patients with Obesity Have Better Long-Term Outcomes after Hospitalization for COPD Exacerbation

Figures & data

Table 1. Baseline patient characteristics according to obesity.

Variable	Obese	Non-obese	p
Total study population
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, Frequency (%)	122 (41)	179 (59)
Demographics
Age, Median [IQR]	61 [52, 68]	65 [56, 74]	<.001
Male sex, Frequency (%)	61 (50)	102 (57)	.282
Social and medical history	Frequency (%)
Hypertension	102 (84)	124 (69)	.007
Hyperlipidemia	72 (59)	80 (45)	.020
Current smoker	58 (48)	89 (50)	.800
Former smoker	46 (38)	77 (43)	.423
Never smoker	18 (15)	13 (7)	.057
Home oxygen therapy required	51 (42)	61 (34)	.215
Diabetes mellitus	76 (62)	42 (23)	<.001
Congestive heart failure	49 (40)	44 (25)	.006
Coronary artery disease	49 (40)	42 (23)	.003
Renal disease	19 (16)	26 (15)	.932
Neoplastic disease	10 (8)	23 (13)	.280
Heart attack	14 (11)	17 (9)	.718
Stroke	10 (8)	20 (11)	.515
HIV disease	0 (0)	1 (1)	>.999
Physical exam and laboratory findings	Median (IQR)
Body mass index (BMI)	36 [33, 41]	24 [21, 27]	<.001
Heart rate (Beats/min)	96 [81, 107]	102 [90, 114]	<.001
Respiratory rate (Breaths/min)	20 [18, 24]	22 [20, 26]	.005
Mean arterial pressure (mmHg)	94 [83, 106]	99 [86, 110]	.198
Temperature (°C)	37 [37, 37]	37 [36, 37]	.291
Hematocrit (%)	40 [36, 44]	41 [36, 45]	.569
Serum sodium (mEq/L)	139 [136, 141]	138 [135, 140]	.119
Blood urea nitrogen (mg/dL)	15 [12, 23]	15 [11, 20]	.316
Serum bicarbonate (mEq/L)	27 [24, 30]	27 [25, 30]	.872
Serum glucose (mg/dL)	138 [110, 201]	121 [103, 152]	.002
SpO2 (%), Median [IQR]	94 [92, 97]	93 [91, 96]	.015
pH^a	7.39 [7.35, 7.41]	7.40 [7.36, 7.45]	.038
PaCO2 (mm Hg)^a	46.70 [38.30, 51.40]	42.00 [35.92, 50.80]	.063
PaO2 (mm Hg)^a	65.50 [56.45, 75.95]	69.20 [55.20, 83.00]	.310
Bicarbonate (mEq/L)^a	27.2 [25.0, 30.0]	27.0 [23.9, 30.3]	.562
FiO2 (%)^a	28 [21, 32]	28 [22, 36]	.462
Severity of disease on admission	Frequency (%)
Altered mental status	3 (2)	5 (3)	>.999
Need for intensive care	9 (7)	22 (12)	.236
Need for vasopressors	0 (0)	2 (1)	.654
Need for ventilatory support	20 (16)	21 (12)	.333
Pneumonia severity index, Median (IQR)	76 [58, 101]	84 [65, 106]	.046
Pneumonia severity index risk class IV or V	40 (33)	76 (42)	.116

^a Not included in adjustment analysis due to missing too many variables.

Bold values are variables that were significant with a p value <.05.

Figure 1. Kaplan–Meier curve for time until clinical stability.

Figure 2. Kaplan–Meier curve for length of stay in hospital.

Figure 3. Bar graph showing mortality.