Readmissions due to hospital-associated infections following cardiac surgery cost about three times as much as non-HAI readmissions, according to a study that was reported at the AHA's Scientific Sessions.
HAIs are the most common non-cardiac complication following cardiac surgery, according to the study. Research showed 2.7 percent of patients experienced an HAI during initial hospitalization, and 8.7 percent of patients were readmitted within 65 days due to an HAI.
The average cost of treating an HAI was around $40,000, according to the research.
Giampaolo Greco, PhD, assistant professor of health evidence and policy at New York-based Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, said avoiding preventable HAIs after cardiac surgery will improve patient health while also reducing the substantial costs of treating cardiac-surgery related HAIs.
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