US Air Force, USNC, 101 Bodin Cir, Travis Air Force Base, CA 94535, USA.
Prev Chronic Dis. 2012;9:E112. doi: 10.5888/pcd9.110136. Epub 2012 Jun 14.
Few studies have evaluated possible racial/ethnic disparities in chronic disease prevalence among US Air Force active-duty members. Because members have equal access to free health care and preventive screening, the presence of health disparities in this population could offer new insight into the source of these disparities. Our objective was to identify whether the prevalence of 4 common chronic diseases differed by race/ethnicity in this population.
We compiled de-identified clinical and administrative data for Air Force members aged 21 or older who had been on active duty for at least 12 months as of October 2008 (N = 284,850). Multivariate logistic regression models were used to determine the prevalence of hypertension, dyslipidemia, type 2 diabetes, and asthma by race/ethnicity, controlling for rank and sex.
Hypertension was the most prevalent chronic condition (5.3%), followed by dyslipidemia (4.6%), asthma (0.9%), and diabetes (0.3%). Significant differences were noted by race/ethnicity for all conditions. Compared with non-Hispanic whites, the prevalence of all chronic diseases was higher for non-Hispanic blacks; disparities for adults of other minority race/ethnicity categories were evident but less consistent.
The existence of racial/ethnic disparities among active-duty Air Force members, despite equal access to free health care, indicates that premilitary health risks continue after enlistment. Racial and ethnic disparities in the prevalence of these chronic diseases suggest the need to ensure preventive health care practices and community outreach efforts are effective for racial/ethnic minorities, particularly non-Hispanic blacks.
鲜有研究评估过美国空军现役成员中慢性疾病流行率的可能种族/民族差异。由于现役军人可以平等地获得免费医疗保健和预防筛查，因此如果这一人群中存在健康差异，这可能会为这些差异的根源提供新的见解。我们的目的是确定在这一人群中，四种常见慢性疾病的患病率是否因种族/民族而异。
我们汇编了截至 2008 年 10 月，年龄在 21 岁或以上、现役至少 12 个月的现役空军成员的匿名临床和行政数据（N=284850）。使用多变量逻辑回归模型，在控制职级和性别后，确定按种族/民族划分的高血压、血脂异常、2 型糖尿病和哮喘的患病率。
高血压是最常见的慢性疾病（5.3%），其次是血脂异常（4.6%）、哮喘（0.9%）和糖尿病（0.3%）。所有疾病的种族/民族差异均有显著差异。与非西班牙裔白人相比，所有慢性疾病的患病率在非西班牙裔黑人中更高；其他少数种族/民族类别的成年人也存在差异，但差异不太一致。
尽管现役空军成员可以平等地获得免费医疗保健，但他们之间仍然存在种族/民族差异，这表明入伍前的健康风险在入伍后仍持续存在。这些慢性疾病的患病率存在种族/民族差异，表明需要确保预防保健实践和社区外展工作对少数族裔（尤其是非西班牙裔黑人）有效。
