Newborns Discharged Within a Day Are More Likely to Be Rehospitalized

Newborns discharged from the hospital within a day of delivery were slightly more likely to return for treatment within the first weeks of life than those allowed to stay longer, according to a report in Wednesday’s Journal of the American Medical Association. Researchers at the University of Washington in Seattle said their findings argued against cost-cutting efforts by hospitals and insurers to discharge mothers and their infants quickly.

“We estimate that among healthy newborns, at least eight of every 100 rehospitalizations within the first week of life may be attributable to early discharge,” the team wrote. In the study, 17% of the 310,578 newborns tracked were discharged within 30 hours of birth. Overall, 6,444 or 2% developed medical problems severe enough in the first month to require hospital treatment.