Study: Readmission rate for COVID-19 is 11%

Eleven percent of Canadian patients who were discharged after hospitalization for COVID-19 were readmitted to the hospital or died within 30 days of discharge, according to a study today in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal).The retrospective cohort study was based on the medical records of all adults hospitalized in Alberta and Ontario for SARS-CoV-2 from Jan 1, 2020, to Sep 30, 2021.

A total of 46,412 (5.5%) adults had a positive COVID-19 test 14 days prior or during their hospital admission. Of these, 8,496 died in hospital and 34,846 were discharged alive.Of those discharged, 30,336 had a typical hospital stay — 30 days or less.

A total of 4,510 had a stay greater than 30 days, and 14% required intensive care unit admission. The median length of hospital stay was 8 days."One in 9 discharged patients died or were readmitted within 30 days after discharge," the authors said, including 10.5% of those with a typical hospital stay, and 12.8% of those with a stay of more than 30 days.Patients who were readmitted or died were more likely to be older, male, discharged to a long-term care facility, and have a medical history of multiple hospitalizations.

Non-specific pneumonia was the most often cited reason for readmission (37.6%), followed by non-specified pneumonia or interstitial pulmonary disease (6.0%), heart failure (4.1%), pulmonary embolism (3.1%) and confusion (3.0%).Of all patients admitted with COVID-19 in both provinces, 91% in Alberta and 95% in Ontario were unvaccinated."Identifying risk factors for early readmission or death is important for both the in-hospital clinical team and the primary care physician who reassumes care after discharge, as well as for transition coordinators deciding which