The following is a summary of “Emergency department visit patterns in the recently discharged, violently injured patient: Retrospective cohort review,” published in the JANUARY 2023 issue of Surgery by Kleber, et al.

It may be possible to identify subgroups for developing cost-effective interventions to encourage healing and avoid treatment failures in patients with violent injuries by analyzing the costs of emergency department (ED) visits after discharge.

All patients who returned to the ED within 90 days of being discharged from treatment for a violent injury sustained between July 1, 2016, and June 30, 2018, were the subject of a retrospective cohort review. To find trends, hospital expenses were estimated for each incidence and compared to variables related to demographics and injury types.

A total of 218 repeat ED visits were found. A high frequency of inexpensive visits was shown in hospital charges. Different pricing trends were seen for Black and LatinX guys compared to White males as a function of age for more complicated visits.

Hospital cost-per-visit analysis revealed patterns among various categories. The underlying etiologies were different for each group, but further hypothesis-driven research and needs analysis was needed. To create efficient solutions, it may be helpful to understand the factors driving these cost patterns.

Reference: americanjournalofsurgery.com/article/S0002-9610(22)00450-0/fulltext