Thomson Reuters has once again given kudos to the top 50 cardiovascular hospitals that have provided patients with top-notch inpatient services and excellent cardiac care. The 13th annual report distinguishes hospitals that have better risk-adjusted survival, lower complications and fewer readmissions.

 The top 50 hospitals were a step above the rest due to the fact that they had:

• Better risk-adjusted survival rates (23 percent fewer deaths than non-winning hospitals for bypass patients);
• Fewer complications (40 percent lower rate of heart failure complications);
• Fewer patients readmitted to the hospital at 30 days;
• Shorter hospital length-of-stay and lower costs. Data showed that the top hospitals discharged bypass patients almost a full day sooner and spent $4,200 less per bypass case; and
• Top hospitals increased their use of internal mammary artery for CABG surgeries from 88 to 96 percent.

Thomson Reuters scored hospitals from 2009 and 2010 Medicare Provider Analysis and Review (MedPAR) data, Medicare cost reports and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Hospital Compare data. The hospitals were scored in several key areas including risk-adjusted mortality, risk-adjusted complications, core measures, percentage of CABG patients with internal mammary artery use, 30-day mortality and readmission rates and length-of-stay and cost per procedure.

The top 50 hospitals are as follows:

Teaching Hospitals With Cardiovascular Residency Programs
Mayo Clinic Hospital, Phoenix
The University of Kansas Hospital, Kansas City, Mo.
Lahey Clinic, Burlington, Mass.
Saint Vincent Hospital, Worcester, Mass.
Park Nicolett Methodist Hospital, St. Louis Park, Minn.
Hackensack University Medical Center, Hackensack, N.J.
Deborah Heart and Lung Center, Browns Mills, N.J.
NYU Langone Medical Center, New York City
Kettering Medical Center, Kettering, Ohio
Doctors Hospital, Columbus, Ohio
The Washington Hospital, Washington, Pa.
Allegheny General Hospital, Pittsburgh
Robert Packer Hospital, Sayre, Pa.
Bryn Mawr Hospital, Bryn Mawr, Pa.
Lankenau Hospital, Wynnewood, Pa.

Teaching Hospitals Without Cardiovascular Residency Programs
Morton Plant Hospital, Clearwater, Fla.
St. Luke's Boise Medical Center, Boise, Idaho
St. John's Hospital, Springfield, Ill.
Decatur Memorial Hospital, Decatur, Ill.
Marquette General Hospital, Marquette, Mich.
St. Joseph Mercy Hospital, Ann Arbor, Mich.
Mercy Medical Center, Canton, Ohio
Aultman Hospital, Canton, Ohio
Bethesda North Hospital, Cincinnati
St. Luke's Hospital, Bethlehem, Pa.
UPMC Hamot, Erie, Pa.
St. Joseph Medical Center, Reading, Pa.
Memorial Hermann Hospital System, Houston
Baptist St. Anthony's Health System, Amarillo, Texas
Corpus Christi Medical Center, Corpus Christi, Texas
St. Mark's Hospital, Salt Lake City
St. Mary's Hospital, Richmond, Va.
Aspirus Wausau Hospital, Wausau, Wis.
Gundersen Lutheran, La Crosse, Wis.
Meriter Hospital, Madison, Wis.

Community Hospitals
St. Francis Medical Center, Lynwood, Cali.
French Hospital Medical Center, San Luis Obispo, Cali.
Martin Memorial Medical Center, Stuart, Fla.
Provena Covenant Medical Center, Urbana, Ill.
St. Vincent Heart Center of Indiana, Indianapolis
Heart Hospital of Lafayette, Lafayette, La.
Nebraska Heart Institute & Heart Hospital, Lincoln, Neb.
Gaston Memorial Hospital, Gastonia, N.C.
The Chester County Hospital and Health System, West Chester, Pa.
Doylestown Hospital, Doylestown, Pa.
Maury Regional Medical Center, Columbia, Tenn.
Heart Hospital of Austin, Austin, Texas
Dixie Regional Medical Center, St. George, Utah
Memorial Regional Medical Center, Mechanicsville, Va.
Bellin Hospital, Green Bay, Wis.

Please note that the order of these hospitals does not reflect performance.