Emergency Diagnosis Linked to Worse Outcomes for Range of Conditions

TUESDAY, Aug. 25, 2026 (HealthDay News) — For a range of nonneoplastic conditions, emergency diagnosis is associated with worse clinical outcomes, according to a study published online Aug. 25 in PLOS Medicine.

Emma Whitfield, Ph.D., from the University College London, and colleagues analyzed records from 1,701,154 patients with one of 13 nonneoplastic conditions in England between 1999 and 2019. The percentage of patients diagnosed as an emergency was examined, and their mortality and time in hospital in the year after diagnosis were compared to those of patients not diagnosed as an emergency.

For nine of 13 conditions, emergency diagnosis occurred in at least 20 percent of patients, including more than 30 and 35 percent of patients with Parkinson disease and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, respectively. The researchers observed a substantial increase (at least +10 percent difference) in one-year mortality in patients diagnosed versus not diagnosed as an emergency for nine of 13 conditions. Patients diagnosed as an emergency were more likely to die within one year, after adjustment for age and year of diagnosis, deprivation, comorbidity burden, and the health care setting in which the diagnosis was made. Even in conditions with generally good prognoses, this association persisted, such as celiac disease and inflammatory bowel disease (adjusted odds ratios, 7.53 and 5.99, respectively). For time in hospital in the year after diagnosis, similarly large differences were seen by emergency diagnosis status.

“Understanding why emergency diagnosis happens could help us identify where earlier diagnosis may be possible or additional support might make a difference,” Whitfield said in a statement.

Abstract/Full Text