Randomized assessment of resource use in fast-track cardiac surgery 1-year after hospital discharge

Background: The authors assessed the safety and resource use associated with fast-track cardiac anesthesia (FTCA) after coronary artery bypass graft surgery (CABG) over a 1-yr period. Methods: One hundred twenty patients were initially randomized to FTCA (n = 60) or conventional anesthetic (n = 60) for primary elective CABG surgery. Patients were followed for 1-yr after index surgery through linkage to universal administrative databases. Acute care hospital readmission rates and length of stay (LOS) and the downstream use of health resources were compared. Resource use was analyzed as use of hospital and rehabilitation center bed-days, expenditures on physician services, and use of cardiac drugs. Results: There were no deaths during the 1-yr follow-up after initial discharge; 15 (25%) patients from both groups were readmitted to acute care hospitals in the follow-up period. The mean LOS for acute care readmission was 0.3 (1-0) in the FTCA and 1.6 (6-3) days in the conventional group at 3 months; P = 0.01, 95% CI (0-1, 5.7) and 0.8 (1.8) and 2.9 (9.6) days at 12 months; P = 0.01, 95% CI (0.2, 7-5). Two (3.3%) patients in the FTCA group and 9 (15%) patients in the conventional group were transferred to rehabilitation facilities. The LOS was 0.3 (1.5) and 2.3 (5.7) days respectively; P = 0.001, 95% CI (0.6,4.0). Specialist visits were more frequent in the FTCA group 6.2 (13.2) versus 1.9 (2.2) visits respectively; P = 0.002, 95% CI (-9.0, - 1.3). Percentage reduction of FTCA cost was 68% at 3 months, P = 0.0002 and 49.5% at 1-yr, P = 0.004 after index hospital discharge. Conclusions: Fast-track cardiac anesthesia is a safe practice that decreases resource use for a 1-yr period after index hospitalization.