Past Articles Create username. When researchers at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston wanted to determine how often chronically ill patients were hospitalized for acute respiratory conditions, they looked at 1,029 patients in four large clinics and related hospitals in nearby Harris County. The study was published in the January 26 Journal of the American Medical Association .
Respiratory conditions are among the most common causes of acute illnesses in ambulatory settings.
Although hospitalization rates have declined overall in the past 20 years, hospitalization rates for respiratory conditions have increased steadily over the same time period. In the Texas study, investigators took cultures for respiratory viruses from study participants to determine the cause of their acute condition and to determine any underlying chronic illness. They also noted hospitalization rates based on income status. The clinics involved serve diverse ethnic and socioeconomic groups. Dr. Glezen, professor of molecular virology and microbiology and professor and head of the preventive medicine section in Baylor's department of pediatrics, is also professor of epidemiology in the School of Public Health at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston.