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Background: As the population with cardiovascular disease (CVD) ages, geriatric conditions are of increasing relevance. A possible geriatric prognostic indicator may be a fall risk score, which is mandated by the Joint Commission to be measured on all hospitalized patients. The prognostic value of a fall risk score on outcomes after dismissal is not well known. Thus, we aimed to determine whether a fall risk score is associated with death and hospital readmissions in patients with a recent incident CVD event. Methods and Results: In this retrospective cohort study, Olmsted County, MN, patients with incident heart failure (HF), myocardial infarction (MI) or atrial fibrillation (AF) between 8/1/2005 and 12/31/2011 who were hospitalized within 180 days after the event were studied. Fall risk was measured by the Hendrich II Fall Risk Model. Patients were followed for death or readmission within 30 days or 1 year. Among 2456 hospitalized patients with recent incident cardiovascular disease (549 HF, 784 MI, 1123 AF; mean (SD) age 71 (15); 55% male), the fall risk score was high in 22% of patients and moderate in 38%. The risk of death was increased if the fall risk score was increased, independently of age and comorbidities (moderate: HR: 1.51; 95% CI: 1.09–2.08; high HR: 3.49; 95% CI: 2.52–4.85). Similarly, the risk of 30-day readmissions was substantially increased with a greater fall risk score (moderate: HR: 1.29; 95% CI: 1.03–1.62; high HR: 1.63; 95% CI: 1.23–2.15). Results were similar for readmissions within 1 year. Conclusions: More than half of hospitalized patients with recent incident CVD have an elevated fall risk score, which is associated with an increased risk in readmissions and death. These results delineate an approach for risk stratification and management that may prevent readmissions and improve survival.

Proper harvest timing of sudangrass [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench ssp. drummondii (Nees ex Steud.) de Wet & Harlan] for hay or silage is a compromise between optimized nutrient quality and yield. Brown‐midrib (BMR) sudangrass varieties have reduced lignification and cell wall concentration resulting in increased digestibility. Non‐BMR and BMR sudangrasses were no‐till seeded and harvested at either the boot or dough grain stages of maturity. When harvested at the boot stage of maturity, there was no difference (P = 0.93) in dry matter (DM) yield between the BMR and non‐BMR varieties; while harvesting at the dough grain stage of maturity the BMR variety produced more DM than the non‐BMR variety (P < 0.01). Dry matter and detergent fiber content increased (P < 0.01) and crude protein and calculated total digestible nutrients (TDN) content decreased (P < 0.01) with increasing maturity in both varieties. Regardless of maturity, neutral detergent fiber and acid detergent fiber were less (P < 0.01), and TDN content was greater (P < 0.01) for the BMR sudangrass compared with the non‐BMR variety. Presence of the BMR gene had no effect (P = 0.99) on in situ effective degradability when sudangrass was harvested in the boot stage, but effective degradability was greater (P < 0.01) in BMR sudangrass when harvested in the dough stage of maturity. Inclusion of BMR genetics did not affect performance or digestion kinetics when silage harvested in the boot stage of maturity was fed to growing steers. Brown midrib genetics provide significant advantages when forages are harvested at advanced stages of maturity, but advantages are not as pronounced when forage is less mature.

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