Unexpected deaths following discharge of medical patients from hospital

[...]any adverse event post discharge could be stressful for the patients and the clinical team.1 Though there is data on hospital readmission rates and post-discharge adverse events, we do not have data on the incidence of unexpected deaths following discharge of medical inpatients.2-4 Hence, we undertook a prospective observational study to estimate the incidence of deaths within 72 hours of discharge from the acute hospital. The primary causes of death. * Ruptured aortic aneurysm. * Metastatic cancer (known diagnosis). * Myocardial infarction/coronary artery disease (two cases). * Cardiac arrhythmia. * Cardiac failure. * Bronchopneumonia. * Pulmonary embolism. * Drug overdose (known abuser). Discussion From our study, the risk of unexpected death following discharge from acute hospital medical wards is around 1 in 1,300. Since there is no published data, we were unable to compare our figures with other regions and countries.