The Effect of Early versus Traditional Hospital Discharge on Activities of Daily Living for Women Undergoing Elective Cesarean Section. An Observational Cohort Study

Background: Cesarean section is one of the most common surgeries performed worldwide and its consequences and complications represent a major public health concern. The policy of enhanced recovery after surgery has been implemented after cesarean section to optimize perioperative care. Enhanced recovery also aims to reduce the length of hospital stay, which might imply substantial healthcare savings. Rising hospital costs are one of the factors in early discharge. Patients & Methods: This was a prospective cohort study. 158 patients met the inclusion criteria of the study, 81 patients were discharged after 48 hours and 77 patients were discharged after 24 hours. All patients received the same postoperative care and instructions. All the study participants received a phone call 1, 3, and 5 days after discharge to objectively assess the activities of daily living through Katz index of independence in activities of daily living. All patients were offered a postpartum visit 1 week after discharge during which the wound was assessed by the Southampton wound assessment scale. Moreover, other maternal complications such as mastitis, puerperal sepsis, or pyelonephritis were assessed and cases who were readmitted were documented. Initiation of successful breastfeeding and neonatal readmission were reported as well. Results: 158 patients met the inclusion/exclusion criteria of the study. There was no significant difference between the two arms of the study regarding baseline characteristics. Katz index of independence showed that the resumption of activities of daily living after CS was similar in both arms of the study on days 1, 3 and 5 after discharge. Time till the passage of flatus and stool after the cesarean section was significantly shorter among the early discharge arm (9.31 VS 14.68, p value < 0.001 & 13.25 VS 24.82, p value < 0.001 respectively). Maternal readmission was not significantly higher among the early discharge arm and at the 1-week postpartum visit, objective wound assessment by Southampton wound scoring assessment was made and there was no significant difference between the two arms of the study. Initiation of successful breastfeeding, and neonatal readmission were similar in both groups.