BMJ open gastroenterology
Dysphagia in infective and non-infective exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: a retrospective cohort study
By Sasegbon A, Mohammed IS, Thompson A and 1 others.
Abstract
Objective
Infection and sepsis have been identified as potential risk factors for dysphagia in hospitalised patients, but their contribution relative to that of respiratory dysfunction is unclear. We used acute exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) as a clinical model to test whether infection is independently associated with dysphagia.
Methods
Retrospective cohort study of adults admitted with acute COPD exacerbations to a National Health Service (NHS) trust in Manchester, UK, between 2022 and 2023. Admissions were classified as infective (n=4474) or non-infective (n=608); patients with sepsis (n=556) were identified within the infective cohort. The primary outcome was new-onset dysphagia during the index admission; secondary outcomes were in-hospital mortality and length of stay (LOS). Regression models were adjusted for age, sex, frailty and Charlson Comorbidity Index.