Unplanned readmission of patients with heart transplantation in 1 year: A retrospective study

Aim To investigate readmission rate and its association with patient characteristics to identify key risk factors associated with unplanned readmission in 1 year after heart transplantation. Background Unplanned readmission after heart transplantation due to complications affects patients’ quality of life and long‐term survival rate. Design A retrospective cohort study. Methods Individual, disease‐related and therapeutic characteristics were included from electronic medical records. Participants were 484 adult patients who underwent heart transplantation between 1992 ‐ 2016 at a tertiary hospital in Korea. Results A total of 204 patients underwent unplanned readmission. The most frequent causes were infection or rejection. Multivariate analysis revealed hypertension and pre‐operative estimated glomerular filtration rate to be risk factors for unplanned readmission. Conclusion Early screening educational programs and interventions based on recommended risk factors are needed to reduce the unplanned readmission rate of heart transplantation patients. Impact Nurses who care for heart‐transplanted patients should initially assess risk factors during the postoperative and recovery periods to reduce risk of readmission following surgery. These findings may contribute to early assessment criteria and development of discharge nursing education materials. 目的 探讨心脏移植术后1年内再入院率及其与患者特征的关系,确定与意外再入院相关的主要危险因素。 背景 心脏移植术后因并发症导致的意外再入院会影响患者的生活质量和远期生存率。 设计 回顾性定群研究。 方法 从电子病历中收集个体、疾病相关和治疗特征。参与者为1992年至2016年间在韩国一家三级医院接受心脏移植手术的484名成年患者。 结果 共有204名患者存在意外再入院情况。最常见的原因有术后感染或排斥。多变量分析表明,高血压和术前预估肾小球滤过率为导致意外再入院的两大危险因素。 结论 应根据建议的危险因素制定早期筛查教育方案及干预措施,以降低心脏移植术后患者的意外再入院率。 影响 负责照护心脏移植术后患者的护士应对术后和恢复期间的危险因素进行初步评估,以降低手术后再入院的风险。此类发现可能对早期评估标准和编制出院护理教育材料有所帮助。