Table 2.
Association between a new discharge prescription for digoxin and post‐discharge outcomes in a propensity‐matched cohort of Medicare beneficiaries hospitalized for HF receiving β‐blockers
| Events | Absolute Risk Differencea | HRb (95% CI) | P Value | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Discharge Prescription for Digoxin | |||||
| No, n = 167 | Yes, n = 167 | ||||
| 30‐day outcomes | |||||
| All‐cause readmission | 27 (45) | 15 (25) | –12 | 0.51 (0.31‐0.83) | 0.007 |
| HF readmission | 11 (18) | 5 (9) | –6 | 0.48 (0.22‐1.07) | 0.071 |
| All‐cause mortality | 3 (5) | 2 (4) | –1 | 0.80 (0.22‐2.99) | 0.742 |
| All‐cause readmission or all‐cause mortality | 29 (49) | 17 (29) | –12 | 0.54 (0.34‐0.86) | 0.009 |
| 1‐year outcomes | |||||
| All‐cause readmission | 70 (117) | 59 (98) | –11 | 0.71 (0.55‐0.93) | 0.014 |
| HF readmission | 34 (56) | 24 (40) | –10 | 0.66 (0.44‐0.99) | 0.046 |
| All‐cause mortality | 27 (45) | 32 (53) | +5 | 1.18 (0.80‐1.76) | 0.405 |
| All‐cause readmission or all‐cause mortality | 76 (127) | 68 (113) | –8 | 0.76 (0.59‐0.98) | 0.032 |
| 4‐year outcomes | |||||
| All‐cause readmission | 86 (144) | 76 (127) | –10 | 0.72 (0.57‐0.92) | 0.008 |
| HF readmission | 52 (87) | 44 (73) | –8 | 0.77 (0.56‐1.05) | 0.092 |
| All‐cause mortality | 50 (84) | 47 (79) | –3 | 0.94 (0.69‐1.28) | 0.685 |
| All‐cause readmission or all‐cause mortality | 92 (154) | 86 (143) | –6 | 0.76 (0.61‐0.96) | 0.020 |
Abbreviations: CI, confidence interval; HF, heart failure; HR, hazard ratio.
a
Absolute risk differences were calculated by subtracting percent events in patients receiving digoxin from those not receiving digoxin.
b
The HRs compared patients receiving digoxin vs those not receiving digoxin.