[Epidermiology of alcohol withdrawal syndrome. Mortality and factors of poor prognostic].

INTRODUCTION

Patients with alcoholism and alcohol withdrawal syndrome (AWS) have a worse prognostic.

METHODS

We have performed a retrospective analysis of the hospital discharges in with diagnosis include AWS from 1 of January of 1997 to the 31 of December of 2002.

RESULTS

We identified 924 hospital stays with 2.4% of mortality (1.6% in Internal Medicine). Mortality is associated with greater age (57 years +/-15 vs. 49+/- 13, p < 0.005), with the diagnostic of hepatic cirrhosis (6.2 vs. 1.8%, p < 0.005), bacteraemia (10 vs. 1.8%, p < 0.001) and respiratory infection (9.6 vs. 1.8%, p < 0,001), with a lower mortality when AWS was secondary diagnosis (1.2 vs. 4.2%, p < 0.005). In multivariant analysis were associated with more mortality age (OR 1.03), hepatic cirrhosis (OR 3.4), bacteriemia (OR 4.5) and respiratory infection (OR 3.6).

CONCLUSION

Alcohol withdrawal syndrome mortality could to benefit from treatment in an Internal Medicine Service.