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Pulmonary Embolism in Older Adults

A look at hospitalization rates

Publish date:: August 26, 2015

Pulmonary embolism hospitalization rates rose along with high mortality and readmission rates for adults aged 65 years and older in a cohort study of Medicare fee-for-service beneficiaries hospitalized between 1999 and 2010. Researchers found:

• Hospitalization rates increased at a relative rate of 134%, with a highest rate for Black patients.

• Mean length of hospital stay decreased from 7.6 to 5.8 days.

• All mortality rates declined but remained high at 4.4%.

• There was no change in the adjusted 30-day readmission rate.

Citation: Minges KE, Bikdeli B, Wang Y, et al. National trends in pulmonary embolism hospitalization rates and outcomes for adults ≥65 year of age in the United States (1999-2010). Am J Cardiol. [Published online ahead of print August 14, 2015. doi:10.1016/j.amjcard.2015.07.068.

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