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Session:: ePosters-Sun1230-M2: Quality & Cost

EP372 - Early Discharge After Colectomy: Striking the Balance Between Efficiency and Risk of Morbidity

Sunday, May 10, 2026
12:46 PM - 12:51 PM ET

    ePoster Presenter(s)

  • Samantha D. Demoss, MD

    General Surgery Resident
    Rush University Medical Center
    Rush University
    Chicago, IL, United States

    Disclosure information not submitted.

    • Author(s)

  • Thomas P. Schermoly, DO

    Colon and Rectal Surgery Fellow
    Indiana University
    Indiana University
    Zionsville, IN, United States

    Disclosure information not submitted.

  • DM

    Dipen Maun, MD, FACS, FASCRS

    Surgeon
    Franciscan Health
    Indianapolis, Indiana, United States

    Disclosure information not submitted.

    • Senior Author(s)

  • Scott Dolejs, MD, MSc

    Colon and Rectal Surgeon
    Indiana Colon and Rectal Specialists
    Indianapolis, IN, United States

    Disclosure information not submitted.

Purpose/Background: Prior studies have demonstrated that early postoperative discharge following colectomy is safe. Although definitions vary, discharge within 24 to 72 hours postoperatively is generally considered early with several centers also performing same day discharge. Reducing hospital length of stay offers potential benefits in lowering healthcare costs while hopefully not compromising overall outcomes. This study seeks to analyze how the day of discharge impacts readmission rates and postoperative morbidity.

Methods/Interventions: The National Surgical Quality Improvement Project (NSQIP) colectomy targeted dataset was used to study patients undergoing colectomy from 2012 to 2022. Patients were included if they had an elective colectomy, were discharged within hospital day seven, and did not experience mortality. A stratified analysis comparing patients with stomas and those without and patients with a right-sided versus left-sided resection without an ostomy was performed as there was significant interaction between these variables. All analyses were performed with SAS version 9.4.

Results/Outcomes: 234,960 patients undergoing colectomy wereincluded of which 216,968 did not have a stoma and17,992 patients did. Amongst patients without astoma, readmission rates were lowest with dischargeson day 0-2 and increased following this (Figure 1,p < 0.001). However, patients with a day 0 dischargehad a higher rate of morbidity compared with day 1 or2 discharges primarily due to higher rates of ileus(Figure 2, p< 0.001). For patients with a stoma, day 0and 1 discharges had higher rates of readmission andmorbidity compared to day 2 to 4 (Figure 1 and 2,p < 0.001). Similar trends were observed comparingcolectomy sites.

Conclusion/Discussion: In patients without a stoma, discharge on day 1 was associated with the lowest rates of morbidity andreadmission. In patients with a stoma, discharge prior to day 2 was associated with higher rates of readmissionand morbidity. Same day discharge after colectomy may be safe in carefully selected patients without a stoma,but there may be a slightly higher rate of morbidity in this cohort primarily driven by ileus.

Readmission Rate based on Day of Discharge
Morbidity Rate Based on Day of Discharge