Introduction:

Comorbidity is the presence of coexisting or additional diseases in relation to the initial diagnosis or guiding disease. It is more frequent in the elderly and contributes to the occurrence of adverse health events such as longer hospitalization and hospital mortality.

Objective:

To determine the effect of comorbidities on the length of hospitalization and in-hospital mortality of patients admitted to the Medical Clinic Services of the National Hospital (Itauguá, Paraguay) and the Central Military Hospital (Asunción, Paraguay) between March and July 2019

Materials and methods:

Prospective cohort design was applied based on the Charlson comorbidity index with a 3-point cut-off point. All men and women, older than 16 years who were admitted to the Medical Clinic Services of the National Hospital (Itauguá, Paraguay) and the Central Military Hospital (Asunción, Paraguay) between March and July 2019, entered into the study. Non-probabilistic sampling of consecutive cases was applied. Two dependent variables were measured: length of hospitalization and in-hospital mortality. RR (95% CI) was calculated and all p<0.05 was considered significant. The study respected ethical standards.

Results:

Five hundred forty-three subjects were included, and there was male predominance (56%). The mean age was 52 ± 20 years. The median Charlson index was 2 points. No statistically significant association was detected between the severity of this index and the length of hospitalization, but in-hospital mortality was higher with a Charlson index ≥4: 6.5% vs. 14.5% (p 0.005).

Conclusion:

The median Charlson index in two Medical Clinic Services was 2. A statistically significant association was found between this index and in-hospital mortality.

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