Associations Between Long-Term Air Pollutant Exposure and 30-Day All-Cause Hospital Readmissions in US Patients With Stroke

Phoebe M. Tran, Joshua L. Warren, Erica C. Leifheit, Larry B. Goldstein, Judith H. Lichtman

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Background: Long-term exposure to air pollutants is associated with increased stroke incidence, morbidity, and mortality; however, research on the association of pollutant exposure with poststroke hospital readmissions is lacking. Methods: We assessed associations between average annual carbon monoxide (CO), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), ozone (O3), particulate matter 2.5, and sulfur dioxide (SO2) exposure and 30-day all-cause hospital readmission in US fee-for-service Medicare beneficiaries age ≥65 years hospitalized for ischemic stroke in 2014 to 2015. We fit Cox models to assess 30-day readmissions as a function of these pollutants, adjusted for patient and hospital characteristics and ambient temperature. Analyses were then stratified by treating hospital performance on the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services risk-standardized 30-day poststroke all-cause readmission measure to determine if the results were independent of performance: low (Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services rate for hospital <25th percentile of national rate), high (>75th percentile), and intermediate (all others). Results: Of 448 148 patients with stroke, 12.5% were readmitted within 30 days. Except for tropospheric NO2(no national standard), average 2-year CO, O3, particulate matter 2.5, and SO2values were below national limits. Each one SD increase in average annual CO, NO2, particulate matter 2.5, and SO2exposure was associated with an adjusted 1.1% (95% CI, 0.4-1.9%), 3.6% (95% CI, 2.9%-4.4%), 1.2% (95% CI, 0.2%-2.3%), and 2.0% (95% CI, 1.1%-3.0%) increased risk of 30-day readmission, respectively, and O3with a 0.7% (95% CI, 0.0%-1.5%) decrease. Associations between long-term air pollutant exposure and increased readmissions persisted across hospital performance categories. Conclusions: Long-term air pollutant exposure below national limits was associated with increased 30-day readmissions after stroke, regardless of hospital performance category. Whether air quality improvements lead to reductions in poststroke readmissions requires further research.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)E126-E129
JournalStroke
Volume54
Issue number4
DOIs
StatePublished - Apr 1 2023

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
NIH National Institute on Aging (F31AG067720-01 and R01AG056628), American Heart Association (17GRNT33440121), and Yale Center on Climate Change and Health through a grant from the High Tide Foundation. This content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the funding sources.

Publisher Copyright:
© 2023 Lippincott Williams and Wilkins. All rights reserved.

Keywords

  • Medicare
  • air pollutant
  • hospital
  • particulate matter
  • readmission
  • stroke

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Clinical Neurology
  • Cardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine
  • Advanced and Specialized Nursing

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