Impact of hospital length of stay on the risk of readmission and overall survival after allogeneic stem cell transplantation

Incidence, economic burden, and treatment of acute respiratory tract infection in hematopoietic stem cell transplantation recipients using real world data in Japan: a retrospective claims data analysis

AIMS

Acute respiratory tract infections (ARTIs) are common in hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) recipients, however, data is limited regarding epidemiology and economic burden of ARTI in HSCT recipients in Japan. We evaluated the incidence of ARTI in HSCT recipients, associated economic burden, and ARTI-related treatments post-HSCT.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Patients receiving HSCT between July 2017 and December 2018, and those enrolled in the JMDC Claims Database for ≥6 months before index month (month when latest medical procedure code of HSCT recorded) were included. The outcomes included demographics, ARTI incidence, healthcare resource utilization (HCRU), direct costs, and ARTI-related treatments.

RESULTS

In 330 analyzed patients, the ARTI incidence rate was 85.5% during total follow-up, consisting of post-HSCT hospitalization of mean 2.1 months and post-discharge periods of mean 17.6 months (post-HSCT hospitalization: 44.8%; post-discharge: 77.6%). For ARTI vs non-ARTI patients during post-HSCT hospitalization, length of hospitalization was significantly longer (mean [SD] months; 2.40 [1.73] vs 1.84 [1.09]; p = 0.0004), and median cost was significantly higher (JPY; 6,250,120.00 vs 4,774,570.00; p = 0.0096). The cost of outpatient visits during post-discharge periods, drug-related and non-drug-related costs of outpatient visits were generally higher for ARTI vs non-ARTI patients. In ARTI vs non-ARTI patients, utilization of any symptom relievers (decongestants, antitussives, and antipyretics), bronchodilators, immunoglobulin G, antibiotics, antivirals, and oxygen supply were numerically higher during post-HSCT hospitalization and post-discharge periods. The proportion of patients and mean prescription days for immunosuppressants during post-HSCT hospitalization were higher in ARTI vs non-ARTI patients.

LIMITATIONS

This administrative claims study lacks clinical data and contains only direct medical costs. Patients were retained if they had at least 1 month of enrollment post-HSCT.

CONCLUSIONS

In HSCT recipients, ARTI leads to substantial incremental HCRU and direct costs for management in real-world settings in Japan.

Characterization of readmission after allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation

To elucidate the incidence, causes, and risk factors associated with readmission due to transplant-related complications, we studied 213 consecutive patients who were discharged without progression of primary disease after their first allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation at our center between 2013 and 2016. The median patient age was 50 years (range, 18-71 years). Eighty-three patients had AML or MDS, 66 had lymphoma, 28 had ALL, 23 had ATL, and 13 had other diseases. The median duration of hospitalization for transplantation was 56 days (range 27-325 days). The cumulative incidences of readmission due to transplant-related complications were 8% at 30 days, 16% at 100 days, and 25% at 1 year after discharge. The most frequent cause of readmission was infection, followed by graft-versus-host disease throughout the first year. In multivariate analysis, steroid use at discharge was the only risk factor associated with readmission within 30 days, and steroid use at discharge, absolute lymphocyte count < 500/µl at discharge, and documented bacterial infection during admission were risk factors associated with readmission within 1 year. Our results indicated that factors during hospitalization or discharge, but not at transplantation, were associated with readmission. Patients with these risk factors should be monitored carefully after discharge.

Risk factors and survival impact of readmission after single-unit cord blood transplantation for adults

Hospital readmissions have been used as a prognostic indicator for patients receiving allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT). However, the impact of readmission during early and mid-phase of cord blood transplantation (CBT) on long-term outcomes has not been fully investigated. We retrospectively analyzed 156 adult patients who received single-unit CBT in our institute. Among this cohort, thirteen patients (8%) were readmitted within 30 days after discharge, and 27 (17%) were readmitted within 90 days after discharge. The most common causes for readmission within 30 and 90 days of discharge were infection, chronic graft-versus-host disease, and relapse. Higher cryopreserved cord blood CD34⁺ cell count was only significantly associated with lower readmission within 90 days after discharge. The probabilities of overall survival were significantly lower in patients readmitted within 90 days after discharge compared with those who were not readmitted within 90 days after discharge in univariate and multivariate analysis. These data suggest that readmission within 90 days after discharge may have a significant impact on long-term mortality after single-unit CBT.