Characteristics and Outcomes of Retinal Artery Occlusion: Nationally Representative Data

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE—There are few large studies examining comorbidities, outcomes, and acute interventions for patients with retinal artery occlusion (RAO). RAO shares pathophysiology with acute ischemic stroke (AIS); direct comparison may inform emergent treatment, evaluation, and secondary prevention. METHODS—The National Readmissions Database contains data on ≈50% of US hospitalizations from 2013 to 2015. We used International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, codes to identify and compare index RAO and AIS admissions, comorbidities, and interventions and Clinical Comorbidity Software codes to identify readmissions causes, using survey-weighted methods when possible. Cumulative risk of all-cause readmission after RAO ≤1 year was estimated by Kaplan-Meier analysis. RESULTS—Among 4871 RAO and 1 239 963 AIS admissions, patients with RAO were less likely (P