Pseudogout in an Acute-care Hospital: Hospitalists as the Key to Optimized Care.

Abstract

Acute calcium pyrophosphate crystal arthritis (CPP) or pseudogout commonly affects older adults and may manifest as fever during hospitalization. However, its recognition as a cause of fever remains under-investigated, and diagnostic delays have been reported in approximately 27% of cases. This study evaluated the diagnostic and treatment accuracies of acute CPP in acute-care hospitals over a decade. Out of 47 cases, effective treatment was administered within 24 h in only 40.4% of cases. When managed by hospitalists, the likelihood of a timely and appropriate diagnosis increases, with a reduction of about half in the unnecessary use of computed tomography scans and antibiotics.