Association of Same-Day Discharge With Hospital Readmission After Appendectomy in Pediatric Patients

Importance: Appendectomy is the most common abdominal operation performed in pediatric patients in the United States. Studies in adults have suggested that same-day discharge (SDD) after appendectomy is safe and does not result in higher-than-expected hospital readmissions.

Objective: To evaluate the influence of SDD on 30-day readmission rates following appendectomy for acute appendicitis in pediatric patients.

Design, Setting, And Participants: This retrospective cohort study used the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program-Pediatric database to evaluate 30-day readmission rates among pediatric patients who underwent an appendectomy for acute, nonperforated appendicitis. The database provides high-quality surgical outcomes data from more than 80 participating US hospitals, including free-standing pediatric facilities, children's hospitals, specialty centers, children's units within adult hospitals, and general acute care hospitals with a pediatric wing. Patients selected for inclusion (n = 22 771) were between ages 0 and 17 years and underwent appendectomy for uncomplicated appendicitis between January 1, 2012, and December 31, 2015. Patients excluded were those discharged more than 2 days after surgery.

Exposures: Same-day discharge after appendectomy or discharge 1 or 2 days after surgery.

Main Outcomes And Measures: The primary outcome was 30-day readmission. Secondary outcomes included surgical-site infections and other wound complications.

Results: Of the 20 981 patients, 4662 (22.2%) had SDD and 16 319 (77.8%) were discharged within 1 or 2 days after surgery. The patient cohort included 12 860 boys (61.3%) and 8121 girls (38.7%), with a mean (SD) age of 11.0 (3.56) years. There was no difference in the odds of readmission for patients with SDD compared with those discharged within 2 days (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 0.82; 95% CI, 0.51-1.04; P = .06; readmission rate, 1.89% vs 2.33%). There was no significant difference in reason for readmission on the basis of discharge timing. Likewise, there was no difference in wound complication rate between patients with SDD and those discharged 1 or 2 days after surgery (aOR 0.75; 95% CI, 0.56-1.01; P = .06).

Conclusions And Relevance: In pediatric patients with acute appendicitis undergoing appendectomy, SDD is not associated with an increase in 30-day hospital readmission rates or wound complications when compared with discharge 1 or 2 days after surgery. Same-day discharge may be an applicable quality metric for the provision of safe and efficient care for pediatric patients with acute, nonperforated appendicitis.