Intensive care treatment in acute pulmonary embolism in Germany, 2016 to 2020: a nationwide inpatient database study

Abstract

Background Pulmonary embolism (PE) is a potentially life-threatening condition. Admission and treatment in the intensive care unit (ICU) is an important element in critically ill PE patients. Objectives We aimed to identify risk factors for ICU admission and differences in patient profiles regarding risk factors and comorbidities between PE patients who had to be admitted to an ICU and those who were treated in a normal ward without ICU. Methods We used the German nationwide inpatient sample to analyze all hospitalizations of PE patients in Germany from 2016 to 2020 stratified for ICU admission. Results Overall, 484,859 hospitalized PE patients were treated in German hospitals from 2016 to 2020. Among these, 92,313 (19.0%) were admitted to ICU. Patients treated in ICU were younger (69.0 [IQR, 58.0-78.0] vs 72.0 [IQR, 60.0-80.0] years; P < .001) and had higher prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors and comorbidities. In-hospital case fatality rate was elevated in PE patients treated in ICU (22.7% vs 10.7%;