Characteristics of patients discharged for acute myocardial infarction hospitalisation in 2008 in Illinois and North Carolina
| Characteristics | Basic/below basic health literacy | Above basic health literacy | Absolute standardised difference* |
|---|---|---|---|
| N (%) | 1113 (14.4) | 6620 (85.6) | – |
| Having hospital readmission within 30 days postdischarge, % | 25.9 | 21.1 | 11.4 |
| Number of hospital readmissions within 30 days postdischarge | |||
| Number/100 patients | 33.2 | 25.3 | † |
| Categories, % | |||
| 0 | 74.1 | 78.9 | 11.3 |
| 1 | 19.9 | 17.5 | 6.2 |
| 2+ | 6.0 | 3.6 | 11.2 |
| Demographics, % | |||
| Age group 65–74 | 42.0 | 33.5 | 17.6 |
| Age group 75–84 | 34.2 | 38.9 | 9.8 |
| Age group 85+ | 23.8 | 27.6 | 8.7 |
| Gender: male | 36.4 | 41.7 | 10.9 |
| Race: white‡ | 43.8 | 90.1 | 112.9 |
| Race: black‡ | 51.3 | 7.2 | 110.9 |
| Race: Hispanic‡ | 2.6 | 0.7 | 14.7 |
| Race: Asian‡ | 1.1 | 1.0 | 1.1 |
| Race: Other‡ | 1.1 | 1.0 | 1.5 |
| Clinical characteristics as 12-month baseline, % | |||
| AMI: anterior | 1.9 | 2.1 | 1.5 |
| AMI: other location | 1.5 | 2.1 | 4.1 |
| CABG | 4.9 | 1.7 | 17.5 |
| PCI | 3.6 | 3.3 | 1.6 |
| Infection | 33.2 | 27.9 | 11.5 |
| Metastatic cancer and acute leukaemia | 1.3 | 2.1 | 5.9 |
| Cancer | 20.3 | 20.1 | 0.5 |
| Diabetes and diabetes complications | 54.5 | 44.7 | 19.8 |
| Protein-calorie malnutrition | 4.0 | 2.3 | 10.3 |
| Disorders of fluid/electrolyte/acid-base | 35.8 | 28.7 | 15.2 |
| Iron deficiency and other anaemias and blood disease | 47.4 | 36.4 | 22.5 |
| Dementia and senility | 21.9 | 17.4 | 11.3 |
| Hemiplegia, paraplegia, paralysis, functional disability | 11.6 | 6.3 | 18.4 |
| Congestive heart failure | 45.2 | 36.0 | 18.7 |
| Acute coronary syndrome | 25.7 | 22.7 | 6.9 |
| Angina pectoris/old myocardial infarction | 19.9 | 20.0 | 0.2 |
| Coronary atherosclerosis/other chronic ischaemic heart disease | 55.9 | 51.0 | 9.8 |
| Valvular and rheumatic heart disease | 21.5 | 20.8 | 1.5 |
| Arrhythmias | 37.6 | 35.8 | 3.8 |
| Stroke | 16.1 | 9.9 | 18.6 |
| Cerebrovascular disease | 26.1 | 22.6 | 8.1 |
| Vascular or circulatory disease | 48.2 | 41.0 | 14.4 |
| COPD | 26.2 | 27.6 | 3.0 |
| Asthma | 10.5 | 7.1 | 12.2 |
| Pneumonia | 21.7 | 19.9 | 4.4 |
| End-stage renal disease | 7.4 | 2.1 | 25.0 |
| Renal failure | 31.4 | 22.2 | 20.9 |
| Other urinary tract disorders | 25.0 | 23.6 | 3.3 |
| Decubitus ulcer or chronic skin ulcer | 11.5 | 8.4 | 10.5 |
| Clinical characteristics during Index AMI admission,% | |||
| AMI: anterior | 6.4 | 7.9 | 5.8 |
| AMI: other location | 8.4 | 12.1 | 11.9 |
| PCI | 27.1 | 34.5 | 16.0 |
| CABG | 6.3 | 6.0 | 1.0 |
| Infection | 5.6 | 4.5 | 4.9 |
| Metastatic cancer and acute leukaemia | 0.6 | 1.0 | 4.4 |
| Cancer | 3.7 | 4.3 | 3.3 |
| Diabetes and diabetes complications | 35.2 | 29.4 | 12.4 |
| Protein-calorie malnutrition | 2.4 | 2.2 | 1.7 |
| Disorders of fluid/electrolyte/acid–base | 23.2 | 19.0 | 10.3 |
| Iron deficiency and other anaemias and blood disease | 21.2 | 17.9 | 8.2 |
| Dementia and senility | 8.0 | 7.8 | 0.8 |
| Hemiplegia, paraplegia, paralysis, functional disability | 6.4 | 2.9 | 16.8 |
| Congestive heart failure | 44.2 | 38.0 | 12.6 |
| Acute coronary syndrome | 0.6 | 0.9 | 2.7 |
| Angina pectoris/old myocardial infarction | 6.6 | 6.8 | 1.1 |
| Coronary atherosclerosis/other chronic ischaemic heart disease | 61.2 | 66.9 | 12.0 |
| Valvular and rheumatic heart disease | 8.4 | 11.3 | 9.9 |
| Arrhythmias | 32.3 | 35.3 | 6.3 |
| Stroke | 2.1 | 1.9 | 1.1 |
| Cerebrovascular disease | 4.9 | 3.9 | 4.8 |
| Vascular or circulatory disease | 17.9 | 17.3 | 1.5 |
| COPD | 16.5 | 17.8 | 3.3 |
| Asthma | 2.5 | 1.8 | 5.2 |
| Pneumonia | 14.0 | 13.6 | 1.3 |
| End-stage renal disease | 2.5 | 0.6 | 15.2 |
| Renal failure | 32.6 | 23.8 | 19.6 |
| Other urinary tract disorders | 4.5 | 4.8 | 1.6 |
| Decubitus ulcer or chronic skin ulcer | 3.8 | 2.2 | 9.4 |
*An absolute standardised difference >10 (approximately equivalent to p<0.05) indicates significant imbalance of a characteristic.
†p<0.001, two-sample t test.
‡Race variables reported for informational purposes only. Consistent with CMS hospital readmission risk adjustment modelling methodology, they are not included as covariates in the models.
AMI, acute myocardial infarction; CABG, coronary artery bypass surgery; COPD, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; PCI, percutaneous coronary intervention.