Risks of Early Mortality and Associated Factors at Adult Emergency Department of Jimma University Medical Center

Mortality in the emergency department is still high in developing countries with resources scarce. Most of emergency department mortality occurred within the first three days; the majority of these deaths are avoidable with proper intervention. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to assess the mortality risks and therapeutic benefits of early and late death.

Case-control study approach with 87 cases and 174 controls (case to control ratio of 1:2) was used on 261 study participants. Data were extracted from the patient charts using a pretested extraction tool. Then, checked data were entered into Epi-data manager 4.6 versions and analyzed using SPSS 25 versions. Binary logistic regression was used to construct bivariate and multivariable analyses following the descriptive analysis. Finally, a predictor variable in the multivariate logistic regression was deemed to have a significant association if its P-value was less than 0.05 at a 95% confidence level.

Patients who were triaged into the red zone had a 2.3-fold greater risk of dying early than those who were placed in another triage category [(AOR=2.3; 95% CI: 1.10, 5.55) P=0.001]. Besides, having cardiovascular disease (AOR=4.79; 95% CI: 1.73, 13.27), age ≥65 years [(AOR=3.2; 95% CI: 1.74, 7.23) P=0.003)], having rural residency (AOR=6.57; 95% CI: 1.39, 31.13), and having been diagnosed with respiratory failure [(AOR=3.2; 95% CI: 1.04, 7.69), P=0.013)] were associated with early mortality.

The common causes of early mortality were respiratory failure, cardiovascular disease, and road traffic accident. Being aged, having rural residence, being triaged into red zone, and diagnosed for respiratory failure and cardiac failure increase early mortality compared with late death.