Causes of mortality due to bacterial pneumonia and clinical-pathological relationship. Abel Santamaría Cuadrado General Teaching Hospital

Introduction: Risk factors for attributable mortality include the severity of pneumonia. Objective: To identify the different causes of mortality due to bacterial pneumonia at the Abel Santamaría Cuadrado General Teaching Hospital in the province of Pinar del Rio during 2018. Method: A descriptive, cross-sectional study was conducted with retrospective data collection. The universe consisted of 848 deaths that occurred during the study period; and the intentional sample consisted of 183 deceased from the entire hospital, obtaining data from clinical histories and autopsy protocols. Sociodemographic variables were studied, taking into account diagnosis at admission, previous illnesses, and hospital stay; a database was created using the Microsoft Excel 2010 program. Statistical analysis was performed following descriptive statistics using basically the percentage ratio. Results: Acute respiratory failure and pneumonia were the main clinical and direct causes of death. Pneumonia, acute purulent tracheobronchitis, and global heart failure were the main indirect causes, with atherosclerotic disease and its branches, cerebrovascular disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and pneumonia being the most significant underlying causes. There was also a high clinical-pathological correlation. Conclusions: In patients with bacterial pneumonia, only half of the deaths can be attributed to the acute disease. Differences in the time of death and mortality risk factors suggest that future studies on this disease should differentiate all-cause mortality from mortality.