Characteristics, eligibility criteria and methods to determine clinical and outcome measures in Genetic and Inflammatory Markers of Sepsis (GenIMS) and Health, Ageing and Body Composition (Health ABC) cohorts
| Variable | GenIMS study | Health ABC study |
| Inclusion criteria | Age >18 years and clinical and radiologic diagnosis of community-acquired pneumonia | 70- to 79-year-old community-dwelling older adults |
| Exclusion criteria | Transfer from another hospital, discharge from an acute care hospital within the previous 10 days, diagnosis of pneumonia within the previous 30 days, chronic dependency on mechanical ventilation, cystic fibrosis, active pulmonary tuberculosis, admission for palliative care, prior enrolment in the study, incarceration or pregnancy | Actively treated cancer, severe cognitive impairment or plans to leave the area within 3 years |
| Enrolment period | 2001–2003 | 1997–1998 |
| Ascertainment of outcome measures | ||
| All-cause mortality | By study nurses during hospitalisation and by National Death Index after hospital discharge | Semi-annual telephone follow-up, notification of death by proxy, spouse, relative or friend, and review of obituaries in local newspaper. Once a death was reported, a copy of the death certificate was obtained in all cases to confirm death, and the next of kin or a predesignated proxy was interviewed |
| Cause-specific mortality | National Death Index codes | Not analysed due to small sample size |
| Severe sepsis | Defined as pneumonia and organ dysfunction, based on the International Consensus Criteria17 | Not assessed |
| Co-morbid conditions | ||
| Diabetes mellitus | Self-report and review of medications (use of oral hypoglycaemic medications or insulin) | Self-report and review of medications (use of oral hypoglycaemic medications or insulin) or fasting glucose ≥126 mg/dl18 |
| Cardiovascular disease | Self-report and review of medications | Self-report and review of medications |
| CKD | Self-report and prehospitalisation creatinine measurements, if available. We also used creatinine measurements available during hospitalisation to exclude CKD | Creatinine measurements at enrolment and using the MDRD criteria19 |
CKD, chronic kidney disease; MDRD, Modification of Diet in Renal Disease.