Quality of life measured with a health-related quality of life scale and a satisfaction scale 6 months after an ICU stay depended on the admission diagnosis. Different dimensions of quality of life were variably affected.

13 episodes of bacteremia caused by Pasteurella multocida were seen in a general hospital during a 12-year period. All the patients had an underlying disease (77% had cirrhosis) and 2 were receiving chemotherapy for hematologic malignancy. There was a numerical preponderance of male patients (69%). In 5/13 cases a recent animal-derived trauma could be found. In the other cases the source of the infecting organism was thought to be endogenous (from patients' own pharyngeal commensal flora) or secondary to contact with secretions of a pet animal. The clinical presentation of sepsis caused by this organism was nonspecific. Hypotension was seen in 5 cases. Localized sites of infection were certain in 6 and only clinically suspected in 4 other cases. The overall mortality rate was 31%. The administration of ampicillin seems the appropriate therapy for Pasteurella multocida bacteremia.

The influence of patients' age on survival, level of therapy and length of stay was analyzed from data collected in 792 consecutive admissions to eight intensive care units. Mortality rate increased progressively with age; over 65 years of age, it was more than double that of patients under 45 years (36.8% versus 14.8%). However, mortality rate in patients over 75 years was equal to that observed in the 55 to 59 years group. There was a significant relationship between age and acute physiology score (APS) and the influence of age upon outcome decreased when APS increased. The number of TISS (therapeutic intervention scoring system) points delivered to patients increased slightly but significantly with age (r = 0.14). Standard care was responsible for the main part of this increase. Both in survivors and in non-survivors the length of stay was not different comparing the stay of the oldest patient with that of the younger age groups. We conclude that, in ICU patients, age is an important factor of prognosis but not as important as the severity of illness, and that there is no major difference in outcome of patients over 65 years of age compared to the entire study group of ICU patients.

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