Readmission of patients after coronary artery bypass graft surgery

Objective: To assess rates, reasons, and predictors of hospital readmission after coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG). Methods: In this prospective, descriptive, correlational study, 124 subjects responded to a mailed questionnaire 6 weeks after undergoing CABG at Yale New Haven Hospital. Results: The sample was 79% male, 94% white, and had a mean age of 66 ± 10 years and a mean length of stay of 5.7 ± 1.8 days. A total of 14.5% had unplanned cardiac-related readmissions (44% to their community hospital). Chest pain with or without shortness of breath was the primary reason for readmission (33%), followed by incisional problems (17%) and analgesic reactions (17%). Logistic regression analysis, based on bivariate analyses, revealed that female sex (odds ratio 4.7; 95% confidence interval, 1.5-14.6; P = .007) and obesity (odds ratio 3.7; 95% confidence interval, 1.2-11.6; P = .026) predicted hospital readmission. Conclusions: Effective follow-up, with particular focus on women and the obese, may decrease readmissions. (Heart Lung® 1999;28:243-50).