Multiple chronic conditions and hospitalizations among recipients of long-term services and supports

Background Among older adults receiving long-term services and supports (LTSS), debilitating hospitalizations is a pervasive clinical and research problem. Multiple chronic conditions (MCCs) are prevalent in LTSS recipients. However, the combination of MCCs and diseases associated with hospitalizations of LTSS recipients is unclear. Objective The purpose of this analysis was to determine the association between classes of MCCs in newly enrolled LTSS recipients and the number of hospitalizations over a 1-year period following enrollment. Methods This report is based on secondary analysis of extant data from a longitudinal cohort study of 470 new recipients of LTSS, 60 years and older, receiving services in assisted living facilities, nursing homes, or through home- and community-based services. Using baseline chronic conditions reported in medical records, latent class analysis was used to identify classes of MCCs and posterior probabilities of membership in each class. Poisson regressions were used to estimate the relative ratio between posterior probabilities of class membership and number of hospitalizations during the 3-month period prior to the start of LTSS (baseline) and then every 3 months forward through 12 months. Results Three latent MCC-based classes named Cardiopulmonary, Cerebrovascular/Paralysis, and All Other Conditions were identified. The Cardiopulmonary class was associated with elevated numbers of hospitalizations compared to the All Other Conditions class (relative ratio [RR] = 1.88, 95% CI [1.33, 2.65], p <.001). Conclusion Older LTSS recipients with a combination of MCCs that includes cardiopulmonary conditions have increased risk for hospitalization.