Smoking Tied to Higher Readmission for Upper GI Bleeding

TOPLINE:

In patients discharged after hospitalization for nonvariceal upper gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding, cigarette smoking is associated with a significantly increased risk for readmission for recurrent bleeding within 30 days.

METHODOLOGY:

• Although cigarette smoking is associated with various GI disorders, its role in increasing the risk for readmissions due to recurrence of nonvariceal upper GI bleeding remains unclear.
• Researchers conducted a retrospective cohort study using 2021 data from a US-based readmission database with the primary goal of evaluating whether cigarette smoking is linked to 30-day readmissions in discharged adults initially hospitalized for nonvariceal upper GI bleeding.
• Secondary outcomes included in-hospital mortality during readmission and healthcare utilization.

TAKEAWAY:

• Researchers analyzed 339,444 index admissions (average patient age, 67.9 years; 46.4% women), with 14.5% of patients having current cigarette smoking habit.
• Within 30 days, 14,247 patients (4.3%) were readmitted for recurrent bleeding, among whom the in-hospital mortality rate was 2.3%.
• Cigarette smoking was associated with a modest but significant increase in the risk for 30-day readmission for recurrent bleeding (adjusted hazard ratio, 1.14; P = .001).
• Readmitted patients had a longer mean hospital stay and higher mean total hospitalization charges than their index admissions (P < .01 for both).

IN PRACTICE:

“Educating patients on the impact of smoking on their gastrointestinal health, along with providing resources for cessation, may help reduce readmission rates, improve overall health outcomes, and decrease healthcare costs associated with recurrent bleeding episodes,” the authors wrote.

SOURCE:

This study, led by Dheeraj Alexander, MD, McLaren Health Care, Flint, Michigan, was published online in Digestive Diseases and Sciences.

LIMITATIONS:

Administrative databases may have inaccuracies owing to missing or incorrect codes. Key clinical details (eg, medication use, laboratory values, and outpatient healthcare utilization) were not available. The database only tracked in-state readmissions, potentially underestimating the true readmission rate.

DISCLOSURES:

This study received no external funding. The authors declared having no conflicts of interest.

This article was created using several editorial tools, including AI, as part of the process. Human editors reviewed this content before publication.