Association between transitional care factors and hospital readmission after transcatheter aortic valve replacement: a retrospective observational cohort study

Background — Studies have shown that patients who undergo trans-catheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) have high rates of hospital readmission. Our objectives were to identify the causes of readmission after TAVR, determine whether transitional care factors were associated with a reduction in readmission and to identify other predictors that could be used to target quality improvement efforts.

Methods — We conducted a chart abstraction study that included all patients who underwent TAVR in Ontario, Canada between 2007 and 2013 and survived to hospital discharge. These data were linked to provincial administrative databases. The association between transitional care factors (home care, rehabilitation, family physician and cardiologist follow-up) and 1-year hospital readmission was examined using a time-to-event analysis. Cause-specific hazards models were used to account for the competing risk of death.

Results — There were 937 patients in the cohort and the rate of readmission at 1-year was 49%. The most common causes of readmission were heart failure and bleeding. Rehabilitation (HR 1.34, 95% CI 1.11–1.62; p = 0.002) and cardiologist follow-up (HR 1.41, 95% CI 1.14–1.75; p = 0.002) were both associated with higher readmission rates. While, home care (HR 1.18, 95% CI 0.96–1.44; p = 0.12) and family physician follow-up (HR 1.04, 95% CI 0.85–1.28; p = 0.71) were not associated with readmission.

Conclusion — Readmission post TAVR is common; however, we did not identify any transitional care factors associated with reductions in hospital readmission. This suggests ongoing research is required to identify targets for improvement in post-procedural care.