Readmission or Death Is Common After Hospitalization for Heart Failure, Myocardial Infarction, and Pneumonia

Among elders, risks for readmission and death are high during the 30 days after hospital discharge. However, risks associated with specific conditions and the extent to which these risks change over time have not been investigated. In this retrospective study, U.S. researchers determined risks for hospital readmissions and death during 1 year after hospitalization from 2008 to 2010 for heart failure, acute myocardial infarction (MI), or pneumonia in more than 3 million Medicare beneficiaries (age, ≥65). The 28 million Medicare beneficiaries in the general population served as controls.

Within 1 year of discharge, hospital readmissions occurred after 67% of hospitalizations for heart failure, 50% of hospitalizations for MI, and 56% of hospita…