Arterial carbon dioxide tension on admission as a marker of in-hospital mortality in community-acquired pneumonia

Among patients admitted with community-acquired pneumonia, in-hospital mortality was greater in those with hypocapnia or hypercapnia. These data suggest that measurement of PaCO2 adds prognostic information to standard prediction rules and should be used for clinical and epidemiologic purposes to risk-stratify in-hospital patients with community-acquired pneumonia.