Hospital Readmissions for Decompensated Cirrhosis

Scope of the Problem In all disease states, early hospital readmissions are increasingly being viewed as a public health threat. Among the Medicare population, 19% of those discharged from an acute-care hospital are readmitted within 1 month, at a cost of> $17 billion, which represents nearly 20% of the Medicare budget. Patients discharged after a hospitalization for decompensated cirrhosis have an even higher rate of early readmission, at 20% to 37% within the first month (see Fig. 1). These readmissions are associated with an increased risk of subsequent mortality, despite adjustment for other risk factors such as severity of liver disease.