Abstract
BACKGROUND: Among cardiac surgery patients, those with impaired cognitive status before surgery may have longer postoperative stays than do patients with normal status and may require additional care upon discharge. OBJECTIVES: To determine if preoperative scores on a screening measure for cognitive status (the Clock-in-the-Box), were associated with postoperative length of stay and discharge to a location other than home in patients who had cardiac surgery. METHODS: A total of 181 consecutive patients scheduled for cardiac surgery at a single site were administered the Clock-in-the-Box as part of the preoperative evaluation. Scores on the Clock-in-the-Box tool, demographic and operative information, postoperative length of stay, and discharge location were collected retrospectively from medical records. RESULTS: The mean age of the patients was 68.1 years (SD, 0.7), and 99% were men. Mean postoperative length of stay was 10.5 days (SD, 8.2), and 35 patients (19%) were discharged to a facility. Scores on the Clock-in-the-Box assessment were not associated with postoperative length of stay. Increasing age, living alone before surgery, and duration of cardiopulmonary bypass were associated with discharge to a facility and were used as covariates in adjusted analyses. After adjustment, better preoperative cognitive status reduced the risk of being discharged to a facility (adjusted relative risk, 0.93; 95% confidence interval, 0.89-0.98) after cardiac surgery. CONCLUSIONS: Cognitive screening before cardiac surgery can identify patients with impaired cognitive status who are less likely than patients with normal cognitive status to return home after cardiac surgery.