TABLE 1.
Patient Characteristics
| Characteristic | Not Readmitted (n = 36,497) | Readmitted Within 30 Days of Discharge (n = 3237) | P |
|---|---|---|---|
|
| |||
| Preoperative characteristics | |||
| Age, median (IQR) | 68 (61–74) | 69 (61–75) | <0.0001 |
| Sex | <0.0001 | ||
| Male | 15,585 (42.7%) | 1594 (49.2%) | |
| Female | 20,911 (57.3%) | 1643 (50.8%) | |
| Race | 0.001 | ||
| White | 30,312 (83.1%) | 2739 (84.6%) | |
| Black | 3195 (8.8%) | 288 (8.9%) | |
| Asian | 1125 (3.1%) | 60 (1.9%) | |
| Hispanic | 948 (2.6%) | 83 (2.6%) | |
| Other | 553 (1.5%) | 45 (1.4%) | |
| Insurance status | <0.0001 | ||
| Medicare/other | 34,089 (93.4%) | 3005 (92.8%) | |
| Medicaid | 1805 (5.0%) | 179 (5.5%) | |
| None/self-pay | 603 (1.7%) | 53 (1.6%) | |
| Lung cancer clinical stage | <0.0001 | ||
| Stage I | 26,330 (72.1%) | 2242 (69.3%) | |
| Stage II | 5068 (13.9%) | 538 (16.6%) | |
| Stage III | 3611 (9.9%) | 339 (10.5%) | |
| Stage IV | 518 (1.4%) | 57 (1.8%) | |
| BMI kg/m2, median (IQR) | 26.9 (23.5–30.8) | 26.3 (23.0–30.4) | <0.0001 |
| FEV1 (%) predicted, median (IQR) | 85 (72–98) | 81 (67–95) | <0.0001 |
| Cigarette smoking | <0.001 | ||
| Past smoker | 22182 (60.8%) | 1999 (61.8%) | |
| Current smoker | 8282 (22.7%) | 845 (26.1%) | |
| Interstitial fibrosis | 392 (1.1%) | 64 (2.0%) | <0.0001 |
| Hypertension | 21899 (60.0%) | 2047 (63.2%) | 0.0007 |
| Steroids | 1015 (2.8%) | 138 (4.3%) | <0.0001 |
| Congestive heart failure | 731 (2.0%) | 90 (2.8%) | 0.003 |
| Coronary artery disease | 6683 (18.3%) | 774 (23.9%) | <0.0001 |
| Peripheral vascular disease | 2800 (7.7%) | 362 (11.2%) | <0.0001 |
| Cerebrovascular disease | <0.0001 | ||
| Transient ischemic attack | 1429 (3.9%) | 163 (5.0%) | |
| Cerebrovascular accident | 1100 (3.0%) | 151 (4.7%) | |
| Diabetes | 6457 (17.7%) | 647 (20.0%) | 0.002 |
| Induction chemotherapy alone | 2761 (7.6%) | 249 (7.7%) | 0.8 |
| Induction chemoradiation therapy | 1532 (4.2%) | 155 (4.8%) | 0.1 |
| Creatinine ≥2 | 401 (1.1%) | 54 (1.7%) | 0.004 |
| Preoperative dialysis | 145 (0.4%) | 23 (0.7%) | 0.01 |
| Zubrod Score | <0.0001 | ||
| 0 | 16,897 (46.3%) | 1276 (39.4%) | |
| 1 | 18,370 (50.3%) | 1799 (55.6%) | |
| 2 or 3 | 1224 (3.4%) | 160 (4.9%) | |
| American Society of Anesthesiologists | |||
| Risk class | <0.001 | ||
| I or II | 6256 (17.1%) | 394 (12.2%) | |
| III | 30,227 (82.8%) | 2842 (87.8%) | |
| Intraoperative characteristics | |||
| Open (vs minimally invasive) | 11,976 (32.8%) | 1230 (38.0%) | <0.0001 |
| Reoperation | 1911 (5.2%) | 195 (6.0%) | 0.06 |
| Lung cancer location | <0.0001 | ||
| Upper lobe | 21,507 (58.9%) | 1896 (58.6%) | |
| Middle lobe | 2682 (7.4%) | 170 (5.3%) | |
| Lower lobe | 11,788 (32.3%) | 1117 (34.5%) | |
| Unspecified | 520 (1.4%) | 54 (1.7%) | |
| Intraoperative packed red blood cells | 643 (1.8%) | 95 (2.9%) | <0.0001 |
| IV antibiotics given within 1 h | 34,522 (94.6%) | 3107 (96.0%) | 0.3 |
| DVT prophylaxis measures employed | 34,744 (95.2%) | 3135 (96.9%) | 0.9 |
| Cephalosporin antibiotic ordered | 34,402 (94.3%) | 3105 (95.9%) | 0.006 |
| Postoperative characteristics | |||
| Unexpected reoperation | 935 (2.6%) | 247 (7.6%) | <0.0001 |
| Air leak with duration >5 days | 3728 (10.2%) | 694 (21.4%) | <0.0001 |
| Pneumonia | 911 (2.5%) | 390 (12.1%) | <0.0001 |
| Bronchopleural fistula | 73 (0.2%) | 41 (1.3%) | <0.0001 |
| Atelectasis requiring bronchoscopy | 1,132 (3.1%) | 184 (5.7%) | <0.0001 |
| Pulmonary embolus | 75 (0.2%) | 96 (3.0%) | <0.0001 |
| Pleural effusion requiring drainage | 315 (0.9%) | 290 (9.0%) | <0.0001 |
| Pneumothorax requiring chest tube | 872 (2.4%) | 457 (14.1%) | <0.0001 |
| Atrial arrhythmia requiring treatment | 3694 (10.1%) | 521 (16.1%) | <0.0001 |
| Myocardial infarction | 69 (0.2%) | 30 (0.9%) | <0.0001 |
| Deep venous thrombosis | 108 (0.3%) | 63 (2.0%) | <0.0001 |
| Urinary complication | 3084 (8.5%) | 472 (14.6%) | <0.0001 |
| Empyema | 61 (0.2%) | 126 (3.9%) | <0.0001 |
| Sepsis | 95 (0.3%) | 73 (2.3%) | <0.001 |
| Central neurologic event | 94 (0.3%) | 50 (1.5%) | <0.0001 |
| Delirium | 734 (2.0%) | 146 (4.5%) | <0.0001 |
| Renal failure | 123 (0.3%) | 42 (1.3%) | <0.0001 |
| Chylothorax requiring | |||
| Drainage/medical treatment | 171 (0.5%) | 28 (0.9%) | 0.002 |
| Postoperative packed red blood cells transfusion | 1125 (3.1%) | 238 (7.4%) | <0.0001 |
| Unexpected admission to ICU | 918 (2.5%) | 232 (7.2%) | <0.0001 |
| Discharge location other than home | 2013 (5.5%) | 335 (10.3%) | <0.0001 |
ICU indicates intensive care unit; IQR, interquartile range.