@article {8115, title = {Increased 1-year healthcare use in survivors of severe sepsis.}, journal = {Am J Respir Crit Care Med}, volume = {190}, year = {2014}, note = {Times Cited: 1}, month = {2014 Jul 01}, pages = {62-9}, publisher = {190}, abstract = {
RATIONALE: Hospitalizations for severe sepsis are common, and a growing number of patients survive to hospital discharge. Nonetheless, little is known about survivors{\textquoteright} post-discharge healthcare use.
OBJECTIVES: To measure inpatient healthcare use of severe sepsis survivors compared with patients{\textquoteright} own presepsis resource use and the resource use of survivors of otherwise similar nonsepsis hospitalizations.
METHODS: This is an observational cohort study of survivors of severe sepsis and nonsepsis hospitalizations identified from participants in the Health and Retirement Study with linked Medicare claims, 1998-2005. We matched severe sepsis and nonsepsis hospitalizations by demographics, comorbidity burden, premorbid disability, hospitalization length, and intensive care use.
MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Using Medicare claims, we measured patients{\textquoteright} use of inpatient facilities (hospitals, long-term acute care hospitals, and skilled nursing facilities) in the 2 years surrounding hospitalization. Severe sepsis survivors spent more days (median, 16 [interquartile range, 3-45] vs. 7 [0-29]; P < 0.001) and a higher proportion of days alive (median, 9.6\% [interquartile range, 1.4-33.8\%] vs. 1.9\% [0.0-7.9\%]; P < 0.001) admitted to facilities in the year after hospitalization, compared with the year prior. The increase in facility-days was similar for nonsepsis hospitalizations. However, the severe sepsis cohort experienced greater post-discharge mortality (44.2\% [95\% confidence interval, 41.3-47.2\%] vs. 31.4\% [95\% confidence interval, 28.6-34.2\%] at 1 year), a steeper decline in days spent at home (difference-in-differences, -38.6 d [95\% confidence interval, -50.9 to 26.3]; P < 0.001), and a greater increase in the proportion of days alive spent in a facility (difference-in-differences, 5.4\% [95\% confidence interval, 2.8-8.1\%]; P < 0.001).
CONCLUSIONS: Healthcare use is markedly elevated after severe sepsis, and post-discharge management may be an opportunity to reduce resource use.
}, keywords = {Aged, Female, Health Facilities, Humans, Insurance Claim Review, Long-term Care, Male, Medical Record Linkage, Medicare, Mortality, Outcome Assessment, Health Care, Patient Readmission, Prospective Studies, Sepsis, Skilled Nursing Facilities, Survivors, United States}, issn = {1535-4970}, doi = {10.1164/rccm.201403-0471OC}, author = {Hallie C Prescott and Kenneth M. Langa and Liu, Vincent and Gabriel J. Escobar and Theodore J Iwashyna} }