Patient Care Outcomes in Hospitalized Patients with Acute Generalized Exanthematous Pustulosis: A Cross-Sectional Database Study

Background Current understanding of the etiology, natural history, and outcomes of acute generalized exanthematous pustulosis (AGEP) has been limited, with most available studies consisting of small or heterogenous cohorts. Objectives The aim of this study was to further characterize associated factors and disease outcomes of AGEP. Methods A cross-sectional study design was employed with formal inclusion and causality criteria. Patients were identified from an inpatient database at an academic medical center, including 65 patients with AGEP and a control group of 61 patients with non-severe cutaneous adverse reactions. Results Increased age and body mass index (BMI) were associated with higher risk of AGEP ( p < 0.001). Length of stay was longer for both the overall AGEP cohort (13.1 days) and a subcohort with a primary discharge diagnosis of AGEP (9.7 days) compared with the control group (3.6 days) [ p < 0.001]. Patients with AGEP were more likely to be discharged to a long-term care facility compared with control patients ( p < 0.001). Conclusions AGEP was associated with longer length of hospitalization, higher rates of discharge to long-term care facilities, and higher mortality compared with non-severe cutaneous adverse drug reaction (SCAR) medication reactions. Future research should examine the association between morbid obesity and this particular drug reaction, and the possibility of decreasing hospitalization length given the relatively low risk of mortality among patients with AGEP.