• Nikoletta Rovina, Magdalini Erifaki, Paraskevi Katsaounou, Georgia Lyxi, Antonia Koutsoukou, Nikolaos G Koulouris, and Manos Alchanatis.
• Intensive Care Unit, First Department of Respiratory Medicine, Medical School, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens and "Sotiria" Chest Diseases Hospital, Athens, Greece. nikrovina@med.uoa.gr.
• Respir Care. 2014 Oct 1;59(10):1560-8.

BackgroundThe 2009 pandemic influenza A (H1N1) virus was accompanied by high morbidity and mortality. The aim of this study was to describe the clinical characteristics of patients with documented 2009 influenza A (H1N1) virus admitted to a reference chest hospital, the disease outcome, and risk factors associated with ICU admission.MethodsWe assessed 109 subjects admitted to the respiratory infection unit of a hospital for chest disease with signs and symptoms of the 2009 influenza A (H1N1) virus between April 2009 and December 2010. Demographic data, comorbidities, clinical signs and symptoms, laboratory tests, radiographic findings, treatment, and final outcomes were all recorded. Factors associated with severe disease requiring ICU admission were determined.ResultsNinety subjects (82.5%) had laboratory-confirmed 2009 influenza A (H1N1). Sixty-four percent of these subjects had pneumonia on admission, 26% had respiratory failure, and 11% required care in the ICU. Dyspnea and the presence of infiltrates on chest x-rays were the most common signs among the subjects with H1N1. All subjects were treated with antiviral therapy, and 75% received antibiotic treatment based on their clinical and laboratory findings. The predictive factors of ICU admission were severe hypoxemia and lymphocytosis.ConclusionsThe outcome of subjects with influenza A (H1N1) virus infection was influenced by the severity of the disease on admission, the subjects' underlying conditions, and complications during hospitalization.Copyright © 2014 by Daedalus Enterprises.

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