While it is easy to imagine how malnutrition can be related to excess readmissions, there are not very many studies examining this association. Of note, the CMS adjustment algorithm for expected readmissions takes into account malnutrition.
This retrospective study from Australia, examined this association among 26 253 admissions, representing 19 924 patients with a 6-month readmission rate of 44.8%. They found that malnourished patients had 40% higher risk of readmission within first week after discharge and 23% higher risk of readmission between the second week and 23rd week after discharge. Authors concluded that malnutrition was a strong predictor of unplanned readmissions and suggested examination of targeted nutritional interventions to lower readmission rate.
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