Nursing home residents face elevated risk of pneumonia
Elderly people who live in residential nursing homes face a higher risk of pneumonia than those who live in their own homes, new research suggests.
A study at the University of Lubeck in Germany analysed 2,647 patients, 1,349 of whom were aged over 65.
Nearly three quarters of the patients were hospitalised and the researchers found that a person's age had a significant effect on their likelihood of developing community-acquired pneumonia, as did living in a nursing home.
Overall, nursing home residents were found to face a fourfold increase in mortality rate when compared against people of a similar age who lived in the community.
The findings are published in the European Respiratory Journal and the researchers concluded that they are particularly important considering the ageing population and growing number of people in western countries requiring residential or live-in care.
Research suggests that elderly people account for around 50 per cent of patients with community-acquired pneumonia in western countries.