Clinical outcomes and cost effectiveness of accelerated diagnostic protocol in a chest pain center compared with routine care of patients with chest pain.
retrospective_cohort · Level III
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 25622029.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1371/journal.pone.0117287 and PMC identifier 4306554.
- Licence recorded as CC BY.
- The licence permits redistribution, so the abstract is shown in full and the full text is available from the publisher.
Abstract
AIMS: The aim of this study was to compare in patients presenting with acute chest pain the clinical outcomes and cost-effectiveness of an accelerated diagnostic protocol utilizing contemporary technology in a chest pain unit versus routine care in an internal medicine department. METHODS AND RESULTS: Hospital and 90-day course were prospectively studied in 585 consecutive low-moderate risk acute chest pain patients, of whom 304 were investigated in a designated chest pain center using a pre-specified accelerated diagnostic protocol, while 281 underwent routine care in an internal medicine ward. Hospitalization was longer in the routine care compared with the accelerated diagnostic protocol group (p<0.001). During hospitalization, 298 accelerated diagnostic protocol patients (98%) vs. 57 (20%) routine care patients underwent non-invasive testing, (p<0.001). Throughout the 90-day follow-up, diagnostic imaging testing was performed in 125 (44%) and 26 (9%) patients in the routine care and accelerated diagnostic protocol patients, respectively (p<0.001). Ultimately, most patients in both groups had non-invasive imaging testing. Accelerated diagnostic protocol patients compared with those receiving routine care was associated with a lower incidence of readmissions for chest pain [8 (3%) vs. 24 (9%), p<0.01], and acute coronary syndromes [1 (0.3%) vs. 9 (3.2%), p<0.01], during the follow-up period. The accelerated diagnostic protocol remained a predictor of lower acute coronary syndromes and readmissions after propensity score analysis [OR = 0.28 (CI 95% 0.14-0.59)]. Cost per patient was similar in both groups [($2510 vs. $2703 for the accelerated diagnostic protocol and routine care group, respectively, (p = 0.9)]. CONCLUSION: An accelerated diagnostic protocol is clinically superior and as cost effective as routine in acute chest pain patients, and may save time and resources.
Medical subject headings
- Chest Pain