Findings on Colectomy Discussed by Investigators at New York Presbyterian Hospital (The Disparity of Care and Outcomes for Medicaid Patients Undergoing Colectomy)

2019 FEB 27 (NewsRx) -- By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at Health Policy and Law Daily -- New research on Surgery - Colectomy is the subject of a report. According to news originating from New York City, New York, by NewsRx correspondents, research stated, “Colectomies are one of the most common surgeries in the United States with about 275,000 performed annually. Studies have shown that insurance status is an independent risk factor for worse surgical outcomes.”

Our news journalists obtained a quote from the research from New York Presbyterian Hospital, “This study aims to analyze the effect of insurance on health outcomes of patients undergoing colectomy procedures. We examined hospital discharge data from the State Inpatient Database, Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, from 2009 to 2014 in California, Florida, New York, Maryland, and Kentucky. The primary outcome was in-hospital mortality. Secondary outcomes included complications, length of stay (LOS), total hospital charges, and 30- and 90-d readmissions. A total of 444,877 patients were included in the analysis. Bivariate analysis showed that open surgeries were more common in Medicaid patients (50.5%), whereas robotic and laparoscopic surgeries were more common in private insurance holders (50.4% and 21.7%, respectively). In the adjusted multivariate models, when compared with private insurance patients, Medicaid patients had the highest odds ratio (OR) for mortality (OR, 1.96; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.78-2.15), complication rates (OR, 1.43; 95% CI, 1.38-1.49), 30-d readmission (OR, 1.47; 95% CI, 1.40-1.55), 90-d readmission (OR, 1.44; 95% CI, 1.37-1.51), longer LOS (coefficient, 1.26; 95% CI, 1.24-1.28), and higher total hospital charges (coefficient, 1.15; 95% CI, 1.13-1.17). We identified Medicaid insurance status as a predictor of open colectomies and of higher mortality, LOS, complications, readmission rates, and charges after colectomy.”

According to the news editors, the research concluded: “Further research and initiatives are necessary to meet the specific needs of patients with different payer types.”

For more information on this research see: The Disparity of Care and Outcomes for Medicaid Patients Undergoing Colectomy. Journal of Surgical Research, 2019;235():190-201. Journal of Surgical Research can be contacted at: Academic Press Inc Elsevier Science, 525 B St, Ste 1900, San Diego, CA 92101-4495, USA. (Elsevier - www.elsevier.com; Journal of Surgical Research - http://www.journals.elsevier.com/journal-of-surgical-research/)

The news correspondents report that additional information may be obtained from R.S. White, New York Presbyterian Hosp, Weill Cornell Med, Dept. of Anesthesiol, New York, NY, United States. Additional authors for this research include D.L. Sastow, Z.A. Turnbull, E. Mauer, Y.F. Chen and L.K. Gaber-Baylis.

The direct object identifier (DOI) for that additional information is: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jss.2018.09.056. This DOI is a link to an online electronic document that is either free or for purchase, and can be your direct source for a journal article and its citation.

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