In a large study, 1 in 2000 adult patients died within 7 days after ED discharge. Predictors of death included increasing age, noninfectious lung disease, and renal disease.
To determine the rate and predictors of death within 7 days after emergency department (ED) evaluation in adults, researchers studied data from the Kaiser Permanente system in Southern California and government databases.
During 2007 through 2008, there were 728,312 discharges of 475,829 patients and 357 deaths. The rate of death within 7 days of ED discharge was 0.05%. The major risk factor for death was older age: patients aged ≥80 had nearly 11 times the odds of death relative to those aged 18–39. Comorbid diseases that were strong predictors of death included noninfectious lung disease (odds ratio 7.1), renal disease (OR, 5.6), ischemic heart disease (OR, 3.8), neoplasm (OR, 3.7), and diseases of the blood (OR, 3.6).
Reviewing Author
DisclosuresConsultant/Advisory BoardPortola Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Speaker’s BureauPeerView Institute for Medical Education
Grant/Research SupportAgency for Healthcare Research and Quality; CDC; NIH–National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences; NIH–National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID); NIH–NIAID–Antibacterial Resistance Leadership Group; Merck; Pfizer; Boehringer-Ingelheim; Shire; Portola Pharmaceuticals, Inc.; Novartis; bioMérieux; Siemens; Rapid Pathogen Screening; Magnolia; Stago; Innovative Biosensors; Molecular Detection, Inc.; Dyax Corp.; Trius Pharmaceuticals
DisclosuresConsultant/Advisory BoardPortola Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Speaker’s BureauPeerView Institute for Medical Education
Grant/Research SupportAgency for Healthcare Research and Quality; CDC; NIH–National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences; NIH–National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID); NIH–NIAID–Antibacterial Resistance Leadership Group; Merck; Pfizer; Boehringer-Ingelheim; Shire; Portola Pharmaceuticals, Inc.; Novartis; bioMérieux; Siemens; Rapid Pathogen Screening; Magnolia; Stago; Innovative Biosensors; Molecular Detection, Inc.; Dyax Corp.; Trius Pharmaceuticals