30-Day Readmission Rates for Joint Surgery Dips, ED visits Rise
OARSI 2019: Readmission rates for joint surgery patients are down in Ontario where post-surgery in hospital stays have been shortened.
(©SuphatthraChina,Shutterstock.com)
Readmission rates for joint surgery patients are down in Ontario where post-surgery in hospital stays have been shortened, researchers from the Krembil Research Institute in Toronto reported this weekend in Toronto at the Osteoarthritis Research Society International (OARSI) World Congress on Osteoarthritis.
“However, this decline appears to have been partially offset by the greater number of comorbidities among patients over time and an increase in visits to the ED,” they reported. This was a population-based study based on data collected between 2004 with 22,700 orthopedic surgery cases and 2016 with 41,900 surgeries on record.
Thirty-day hospital readmissions declined from 3.7 percent in 2004 to 2.9 percent in 2016. But, ED visits increased from 11.1 percent in 2004 to 15.5 percent in 2016.
In 2004, 33.1 percent of patients stayed in hospital for two days post-surgery; compared to 58.2 percent in 2016. Men living in rural areas, of older age and who had more comorbidities were significantly more likely to visit the ED post-surgery and be readmitted within 30-days of discharge. Higher income, shorter hospital stays and being discharged home were less likely to visit the ED or be readmitted with complications. (©SuphatthraChina,Shutterstock.com)
