There was a significant decrease in adverse events among patients admitted for acute myocardial infarction (MI), heart failure (HF), pneumonia, and major surgical procedures between 2010 and 2019, as well as for patients admitted for all other conditions between 2012 and 2019, according to a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Harlan Krumholz, MD, SM, and colleagues assessed changes in rates of in-hospital adverse events. The analysis included 244,542 adults hospitalized in 3,156 US hospitals for acute MI (17%), HF (17%), pneumonia (21%), and major surgical procedures (22%), as well as all other conditions (22%). The annual changes represented by relative risk in all adverse events per 1,000 discharges were 0.94 for acute MI, 0.95 for HF, 0.94 for pneumonia, 0.93 for major surgical procedures, and 0.97 for all other conditions when adjusting for patient and hospital characteristics. In all groups, the risk-adjusted adverse event rates declined significantly for adverse drug events, hospital-acquired infections, and general adverse events. The risk-adjusted rates of events after a major surgical procedure declined significantly.
