Racial Disparities in MI Outcomes: Searching for a Cause

Results of a prospective cohort study suggest that differences in patient characteristics at baseline play a bigger role than differences in care.

That black patients tend to fare worse after MI than white patients do is well established. To explore why, investigators conducted a prospective cohort study involving 1849 participants in PREMIER (Prospective Registry Evaluating Myocardial Infarction: Events and Recovery) who were treated for MI at 10 hospitals between January 1, 2003, and June 28, 2004. A total of 514 (27.8%) patients were black (range, 5%–93% per site). On average, compared with white patients, black patients were younger, more likely to be female and to have non–ST-segment-elevation MI, and had more comorbidities and worse socioeconomic and psychosocial status.

In the 99% of participants for whom survival status was available, unadjusted mortality estimates were 19.9% f…

Reviewing Author

Joel M. Gore, MD

Disclosures

Grant/Research SupportNIH–National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute

Joel M. Gore, MD

Disclosures

Grant/Research SupportNIH–National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute