Unplanned hospital readmissions after kidney transplantation among patients in Hefei, China: Incidence, causes and risk factors.
Aiqin Chu, Tian Zhang, Yueyan Fang and 3 others
PMID 32817851WHAT IT FOUND
122 kidney transplant patients were readmitted within one year, and the reported incidence was 23.75%.
Infection caused most readmissions. Prior hemodialysis or peritoneal dialysis and longer initial stay were linked with readmission.
Key findings
01The paper reported a one-year unplanned readmission rate of 23.75% (122 patients), with a 30-day rate of 1.74% (9 patients) and a 90-day rate of 12.35% (64 patients).
02Infection accounted for 72.1% of unplanned readmissions, followed by metabolic disturbances (10.7%), renal issues (7.4%), cardiovascular events (4.1%), surgical complications (2.5%), and other causes (3.3%).
03In logistic regression, hemodialysis (OR 10.462, 95% CI 1.355-80.748), peritoneal dialysis (OR 8.746, 95% CI 1.074-71.238), and longer length of stay (OR 1.023, 95% CI 1.006-1.040) were associated with increased odds of unplanned readmission.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
Only one transplant center in China was studied, so results may not apply to other hospitals or populations. Some patients may have been readmitted to other hospitals and not captured. Data were collected retrospectively from records, so missing or inaccurate documentation could affect results. Some known risk factors from previous studies were not included in the chart review. The Results section reported a one-year incidence of 23.75%, but the Discussion reported 22.59%. The confidence intervals for hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis odds ratios were very wide, so the size of the association is uncertain. The study did not test whether any nurse-led monitoring, education, or follow-up intervention prevented readmission.
Declared interests
No competing interests were declared. The work was supported by the National Key Clinical Specialist Construction Projects of China.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that dialysis caused readmission or that a specific nursing intervention will prevent it. The study was retrospective and observational, and the confidence intervals were wide.