Neighborhood Deprivation is Associated With Hospital Length of Stay, Discharge Disposition, and Readmission Rates for Patients Who Survive Hospitalization With Traumatic Brain Injury

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a leading cause of disability in the United States. Limited research exists on the influence of area-level socioeconomic status and outcomes after TBI. This study investigated the correlation between the Area Deprivation Index (ADI) and (1) 90-day hospital readmission rates, (2) facility discharge, and (3) prolonged (≥5 days) hospital length of stay (LOS). METHODS: Single-center retrospective review of adult (18 years or older) patients who were admitted for TBI during 2018 was performed. Patients were excluded if they were admitted for management of a chronic or subacute hematoma. We extracted relevant clinical and demographic data including sex, comorbidities, age, body mass index, smoking status, TBI mechanism, and national ADI. We categorized national ADI rankings into quartiles for analysis. Univariate, multivariate, and area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUROC) analyses were performed to assess the relationship between ADI and 90-day readmission, hospital LOS, and discharge disposition. RESULTS: A total of 523 patients were included in final analysis. Patients from neighborhoods in the fourth ADI quartile were more likely to be Black ( P = .007), have a body mass index ≥30 kg/m 2 ( P = .03), have a Charlson Comorbidity Index ≥5 ( P = .004), and have sustained a penetrating TBI ( P = .01). After controlling for confounders in multivariate analyses, being from a neighborhood in the fourth ADI quartile was independently predictive of 90-day hospital readmission (odds ratio OR: 1.35 1.12-1.91, P = .011) (model AUROC: 0.82), discharge to a facility (OR: 1.46 1.09-1.78, P = .03) (model AUROC: 0.79), and prolonged hospital LOS (OR: 1.95 1.29-2.43, P = .015) (model AUROC: 0.85). CONCLUSION: After adjusting for confounders, including comorbidities, TBI mechanism/severity, and age, higher ADI was independently predictive of longer hospital LOS, increased risk of 90-day readmission, and nonhome discharge. These results may help establish targeted interventions to identify at-risk patients after TBI.