Factors Influencing Thirty-Day Readmission Rate in Patients With Heart Failure Exacerbation

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study is to further investigate the leading causes of readmission at 30 days in heart failure exacerbation patients, along with associations to mortality and intensive care unit (ICU) admissions. METHODS: A retrospective data analysis was performed on a total of 33,400 patients between January 1, 2016, and December 31, 2020. The primary endpoints were to determine whether guideline-directed medical therapy (GDMT), length of stay, and time to first diuretic affect readmission rates. Secondary endpoints include time to first chest X-ray, time to first echocardiogram, administration of intravenous fluids, diet, presence of cardiology consult, and ICU admission. RESULTS: Patients who received GDMT had decreased likelihood of mortality (odds ratio (OR): 0.518; 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.394 - 0.682; P < 0.001). Patients who had an echocardiogram done within 1 day of admission had less likelihood of death (OR: 0.606; 95% CI: 0.483 - 0.759; P < 0.001). In addition, patients who had a cardiac diet during their hospitalization were 0.632 times less likely to experience mortality (95% CI: 0.502 - 0.797; P < 0.001). Patients that received their first intravenous diuretic 2 h or more after admission were 1.290 times as likely to be readmitted within 30 days (95% CI: 1.018 - 1.634; P = 0.035). In addition, patients that did not receive intravenous diuretics were even more likely to be readmitted within 30 days (OR: 1.555; 95% CI: 1.237 - 1.955; P < 0.01). Patients who were treated with GDMT had a decreased chance of being readmitted within 30 days (OR: 0.781; 95% CI: 0.647 - 0.944; P = 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: This study stresses the importance of initiating GDMT, cardiac diet, diuretics, and echocardiogram in timely manner.