Initiation of medication for alcohol use disorder at discharge may reduce readmissions: JAMA
Researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston have found in a new cohort study that starting medication for alcohol use disorder (MAUD) at discharge among people with alcohol-related hospitalizations may reduce likelihood of readmission.
US Food and Drug Administration–approved medications for alcohol use disorder (MAUD) are significantly underused. Hospitalizations may provide an unmet opportunity to initiate MAUD, but few studies have examined clinical outcomes of patients who initiate these medications at hospital discharge. A study was done toinvestigate the association between discharge MAUD initiation and 30-day posthospitalization outcomes. This cohort study was conducted among patients with Medicare Part D who had alcohol-related hospitalizations in 2016. Data were analyzed from October 2022 to December 2023. The primary outcome was a composite of all-cause mortality or return to hospital (emergency department visits and hospital readmissions) within 30 days of discharge. Secondary outcomes included these components separately, return to hospital for alcohol-related diagnoses, and primary care or mental health follow-up within 30 days of discharge. Propensity score 3:1 matching and modified Poisson regressions were used to compare outcomes between patients who received and did not receive discharge MAUD.
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