Study finds high readmission rates among sepsis survivors
A brush with sepsis may increase a patient's odds of being readmitted to the hospital, according to a new study. Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania tracked sepsis patients who were treated at the university's health system between 2010 and 2015 and found that sepsis admissions increased from 3.9% to 9.4% in that window, while mortality rates decreased from 24.1% to 14.8%. However, the researchers discovered a sharp uptick in the number of discharges at risk for readmission related to sepsis, which rose from 2.7% to 7.8%. Rates for 30-day readmissions did decrease modestly during the study window, from 26.4% to 23.1%, but that decrease was offset by a spike in treat-and-release visits to the emergency room, which jumped from 2.8% to a 2014 peak of 5.4%.
The researchers said future studies should expand to include a larger patient population and more hospitals, but they said the results highlight a need for hospitals to develop ways to mitigate the risks for sepsis survivors.
Read more: https://www.fiercehealthcare.com/hospitals-health-systems/university-pennsylvania-sepsis-readmissions-mortality-rates-infection