Atrial Fibrillation Increases Average Length of Stay by Half a Day Among Patients with Diabetes with Complications at Selected Indiana Hospitals


In Atrial fibrillation (AFib)

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By: James Pitt  Jun. 29, 2018

Atrial fibrillation (Afib) is an irregular heartbeat that has a major impact on quality of life and increases the risk of stroke or heart failure. A May 2018 meta-analysis found that diabetes raises the risk of atrial fibrillation by 28%.

Dexur analysts examined rates and quality outcomes of atrial fibrillation in patients with diabetes with complications. The sample consisted of discharges with diabetes with complications (DRG 638) or major complications (DRG 637), at seven hospitals in Indiana with over 5,000 CMS inpatient discharges per year from 2013-2016.

At all hospitals, patients with major complications were more likely to have Afib than patients with non-major complications. The gap was smallest at St. Vincent Indianapolis Hospital, where 19% of DRG 637 patients and 18% of DRG 638 patients had Afib.

Rate of Atrial Fibrillation in Inpatients with Diabetes with Complications or Major Complications, Indiana

Rates of Afib were lowest at Indiana University Health Methodist (Indianapolis), where 14% of DRG 637 patients and 8% of DRG 638 patients had Afib. The highest rate of Afib in DRG 637 was at Reid Health (Richmond), at 30%; the highest rate in DRG 638 was 21% at Franciscan Health Indianapolis.

On average, diabetes patients with complications had longer stays at these hospitals if they had atrial fibrillation.

The weighted average length of stay across these seven hospitals was 3.5 days for patients with non-major complications without Afib; 4.03 days with non-major complications with Afib; 5.42 days with major complications and Afib; and 6.08 days with major complications and Afib.

DEXUR PRO MEMBERS GET ACCESS TO:

  1. Total DRG Discharges
  2. Total Atrial Fibrillation Discharges at DRG
  3. Avg. LOS at DRG
  4. Avg. LOS without Atrial Fibrillation at DRG
  5. Avg. LOS with Atrial Fibrillation at DRG
  6. Avg. Difference in LOS with & without Atrial Fibrillation
  7. State Avg. Difference in LOS
  8. National Avg. Difference in LOS

For DRGs 637 and 638, from 2013-2016, at the following hospitals:

  1. Indiana University Health Methodist
  2. Deaconess Hospital
  3. St Vincent Indianapolis Hospital
  4. Franciscan Health Indianapolis
  5. Indiana University Health Ball Memorial Hospital
  6. St Marys Medical Center - Evansville
  7. Reid Health


ABOUT THE AUTHOR

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James Pitt

James Pitt is a science writer with experience in medical devices and textbook publishing. His hobbies include reading, flintknapping, and squinting at RStudio. He received a bachelor's in Human Evolutionary Biology from Harvard.