Incidence of postoperative pneumonia in various surgical subspecialties: a retrospective study

Postoperative pneumonia (POP) can be defined as either hospital-acquired pneumonia (HAP, pneumonia developing 48-72 h after admission) or ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP, pneumonia developing 48-72 h after endotracheal intubation)' or within 30 days in postoperative patients. POP accounts for 2.7-3.4% of postoperative complications. Few studies have evaluated the incidence and the risk factors of POP. This study aimed to estimate the incidence of POP and identify the predictive factors of POP in King Abdul-Aziz University Hospital (KAUH), Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. This retrospective record review included all patients diagnosed with POP at KAUH between 2011 and 2021. Patients younger than 18 years of age and those diagnosed with congenital heart or lung disease were excluded from the study. Data were analyzed using the SPSS program version 26. Of the 2350 patients, 236 met the inclusion criteria. The mean age of patients was 58.12± 17.66 years; 82.6% had comorbidities. ENT (6.4%) and cardiothoracic surgeries associated with POP were the most common surgeries (4.2%). Comorbidities were found as an independent predictor of pneumonia among the studied patients (P = 0.024). The incidence of developing POP was (19.9%). Therefore, Physicians should be aware of POP. Especially when treating patients with comorbidities and patients on corticosteroids.