Abstract

RAMIREZ ZALDIVAR, Maicelys et al. Incidence and mortality due to anemia in acutely ill patients. MEDISAN [online]. 2012, vol.16, n.9, pp. 1408-1415. ISSN 1029-3019.

Introduction: anemia is one of the well-known and evaluated diseases in the daily medical practice. Objective: to determine the morbidity and mortality of acutely ill patients with anemia. Methods: a prospective study of 118 patients admitted in the Intensive Therapy Unit of "Vladimir Ilich Lenin" General University Hospital in Holguín was carried out from August to December, 2010. Discrete variables were compared by means of the X² and Fisher tests, and the continuous variables, by means of the T-Student and Mann-Whitney tests (the mean hemoglobin), for á =0.05. Results: anemia affected 79.6% of the members of the series and it increased progressively, with the consequent worsening of them, out of which 34.0% died, those older in age (p=0.0004), those who needed more blood transfusions (p=0.005) and who presented the hemoglobin dysfunction later (5.1 days). Of the patients with severe anemia (hemoglobin: <85 g/L), 50.0% died; nevertheless, red blood cell supplies didn't seem to associate with the decrease of mortality (p > 0.05). Conclusions: anemia in acutely ill patients was related to a higher mortality, hospital stay, necessity of red blood cell transfusions and medical causes (neurological), while, the advanced age and anemia severity of late occurrence were associated fundamentally to mortality.

Keywords : anemia; blood transfusions; seric iron; mortality; hospital stay; Intensive Therapy Unit.

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