Joblessness, decreased income, and disability in intensive care unit survivors of nontraumatic intracranial hemorrhage in South Korea

Objectives: To examine the proportions of unemployment, decreased household income, and newly acquired disability, and their impact on long-term mortality after intensive care unit (ICU) admission due to nontraumatic intracranial hemorrhage (IH). Materials and methods: This nationwide population-based retrospective cohort study enrolled adult patients admitted to the ICU because of nontraumatic IH between 2010 and 2018 in South Korea. Patients who were alive >= 365 days after ICU admission were defined as nontraumatic IH survivors. Results: In total, 104,086 nontraumatic IH survivors were included in the final analysis. Among them, 7,225 (6.9 %) experienced job loss, 25,709 (24.7 %) experienced decreased household income, and 20,938 (20.1 %) had newly acquired disabilities, of whom 14,188 (13.6 %) had newly acquired brain disabilities. Male sex, increased duration of intensive care unit stay, comorbid status, hospital admission through the emergency room, nontraumatic intracerebral hemorrhage, receipt of surgery, mechanical ventilatory support, and increased total cost of hospitalization were associated with job loss, decreased household income, and newly acquired disabilities. However, these changes were not significantly associated with 2-year all-cause mortality (adjusted hazard ratio: 1.00, 95 % confidence interval: 0.95, 1.06; P = 0.997).Conclusions: Many nontraumatic IH survivors experienced unemployment, decreased household income, and newly acquired disability one year after ICU admission in South Korea. Some factors were potential risk factors for these changes, but the changes were not associated with 2-year all-cause mortality.

Automated summary

The study found that many survivors of nontraumatic intracranial hemorrhage in South Korea experience unemployment, decreased household income, and newly acquired disability after intensive care unit admission. However, these changes are not associated with 2-year all-cause mortality.