Rapid sustained recovery after cardiac operations.

After successful cardiac operations in the early 1980s the most common causes of prolonged hospitalizations were noncardiac disorders. We prevented or quickly corrected these noncardiac disorders after operations in succeeding patients and observed in the following 2 years that the shortest postoperative stays in the hospital were followed by the fewest rehospitalizations. In 240 consecutive patients the median length of hospital stay after operation was 4 days. The operations included coronary artery bypass procedures, aortic valve replacements, and mitral valve operations. Six patients (2.5%) were rehospitalized within 6 months after discharge and five patients (2.1%) were rehospitalized 6 to 24 months after discharge: Longer initial hospitalizations would not have prevented rehospitalizations. Forty of the 240 patients were discharged on the third postoperative day or earlier (one patient). None died or were rehospitalized in the following 2 years. Prevention or quick correction of noncardiac disorders allowed rapid recovery after heart operations, and rapid recovery indicated that health would be maintained.