Impact of medical or surgical admission on outcomes of patients with acute cholecystitis.

BACKGROUND: Although acute cholecystitis (AC) is a surgical disease, patients with the condition may be admitted to medical-related services (MS). This may lead to delayed cholecystectomy thereby affecting outcomes and quality of care.

METHODS: Between July 2010 and March 2013, 329 patients under 70 years old presented to a community-based tertiary care hospital with AC and underwent same admission cholecystectomy. Outcomes were compared between patients admitted to MS and surgical services (SS).

RESULTS: Two hundred fifteen patients (65.3%) were admitted to a MS. Patients under the MS had longer LOS (3.0 days vs. 2.0 days, p < 0.001), waiting time to surgical consultation (7.3 h vs. 5.0 h, p < 0.001) and to cholecystectomy (1.0, 0-2 days vs. 1.0, 0-1 day, p < 0.001), and increased hospital costs ($3685 vs. $4,688, p < 0.001) compared to the SS. Readmission and mortality rates were not significantly different between groups.

CONCLUSION: Patients under 70 years old with AC undergoing cholecystectomy admitted to MS had increased LOS, delay to the operation, and hospital costs compared to those admitted to a SS. Admission of patients with AC to a SS needs to be emphasized to reduce costs and improve quality of care.