A case-control study by Boraiah et al. in the December 2, 2015 JBJS describes a risk-stratification tool that helps predict which patients undergoing total joint arthroplasty (TJA) are likely to be readmitted to the hospital after discharge. The authors used the tool—dubbed the Readmission Risk Assessment Tool, or RRAT—preoperatively among 207 patients who were subsequently readmitted after primary TJA and two cohorts of 234 patients each (one random and one age-matched) who were not.
The total RRAT score for each individual is the cumulative sum of all scores for modifiable risk factors such as infection, smoking, obesity, diabetes, and VTE. Non-modifiable risk factors such as age, sex, race, and socioeconomic status are not included in the scoring system.
