title: Hospital Readmissions After Intestinal and Multivisceral Transplantation.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Intestinal transplant recipients require frequent hospital readmission after a successful transplantation, but the reasons for readmission have not been characterized in detail.
  
  
  METHODS
  We reviewed our single-center experience to characterize the patterns of readmissions and to identify preventable causes. Among 87 adult patients who received an intestinal or multivisceral transplant, 65 patients (35 males, 30 females; median age, 42 years [range, 19-66]) with a follow-up of at least 1 year were included in this study. Readmissions were defined as any unplanned inpatient hospital stay of 24 hours or longer occurring within 1 year after discharge from the transplantation admission and were classified as early (<1 month) and late (months 2-12) readmissions.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Forty-four (68%) patients required early, and 59 (91%) patients required late readmission. A total of 333 readmissions (median, 4 readmissions/patient [0-20]) occurred within the first year post-transplantation; 69 were early (21%) and 264 were late (79%), resulting in a total of 4089 days of hospital stay (median, 7 days/readmission [2-136]). The three most frequent causes of readmission were dehydration, infection, and surgical complications.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These findings suggest that the rate of hospital readmission after intestinal transplantation could potentially be reduced by optimizing fluid balance and hydration status after discharge.
authors: Georgetown University Hospital, Transplant Institute, Washington, DC, USA.
authors: Y K
authors: YK
authors: Kwon
authors: Georgetown University Hospital, Transplant Institute, Washington, DC, USA.
authors: K
authors: K
authors: Etesami
authors: Georgetown University School of Medicine, Washington, DC, USA.
authors: A L
authors: AL
authors: Sharp
authors: Georgetown University Hospital, Transplant Institute, Washington, DC, USA.
authors: C S
authors: CS
authors: Matsumoto
authors: Georgetown University Hospital, Transplant Institute, Washington, DC, USA.
authors: T M
authors: TM
authors: Fishbein
authors: Georgetown University Hospital, Transplant Institute, Washington, DC, USA. Electronic address: Raffaele.Girlanda@gunet.georgetown.edu.
authors: R
authors: R
authors: Girlanda
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D003681:Dehydration / Q000209:etiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007422:Intestines / Q000637:transplantation; D007902:Length of Stay / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D016377:Organ Transplantation / Q000009:adverse effects*; D010359:Patient Readmission / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000209:etiology*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D013997:Time Factors; D014781:Viscera / Q000637:transplantation; D055815:Young Adult