Racial and ethnic differences in presentation severity and postoperative outcomes in vascular surgery.

BACKGROUND

We assessed the effect of race and ethnicity on presentation severity and postoperative outcomes in those with abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAAs), carotid artery stenosis (CAS), peripheral arterial disease (PAD), and type B aortic dissection (TBAD).

METHODS

MEDLINE, Embase, and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials from inception until December 2020. Two reviewers independently selected randomized controlled trials and observational studies reporting race and/or ethnicity and presentation severity and/or postoperative outcomes for adult patients who had undergone major vascular procedures. They independently extracted the study data and assessed the risk of bias using the Newcastle-Ottawa scale. The meta-analysis used random effects models to derive the odds ratios (ORs) and risk ratios (RRs) and their corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CIs). The primary outcome was presentation severity stratified by the proportion of patients with advanced disease, including ruptured vs nonruptured AAA, symptomatic vs asymptomatic CAS, chronic limb-threatening ischemia vs claudication, and complicated vs uncomplicated TBAD. The secondary outcomes included postoperative all-cause mortality and disease-specific outcomes.

RESULTS

A total of 81 studies met the inclusion criteria. Black (OR, 4.18; 95% CI, 1.31-13.26), Hispanic (OR, 2.01; 95% CI, 1.85-2.19), and Indigenous (OR, 1.97; 95% CI, 1.39-2.80) patients were more likely to present with ruptured AAAs than were White patients. Black and Hispanic patients had had higher symptomatic CAS (Black: OR, 1.20; 95% CI, 1.04-1.38; Hispanic: OR, 1.32; 95% CI, 1.20-1.45) and chronic limb-threatening ischemia (Black: OR, 1.67; 95% CI, 1.14-2.43; Hispanic: OR, 1.73; 95% CI 1.13-2.65) presentation rates. No study had evaluated the effect of race or ethnicity on complicated TBAD. All-cause mortality was higher for Black (RR, 1.23; 95% CI, 1.01-1.51), Hispanic (RR, 1.90; 95% CI, 1.57-2.31), and Indigenous (RR, 1.24; 95% CI, 1.12-1.37) patients after AAA repair. Postoperatively, Black (RR, 1.54; 95% CI, 1.19-2.00) and Hispanic (RR, 1.54; 95% CI, 1.31-1.81) patients were associated with stroke/transient ischemic attack after carotid revascularization and lower extremity amputation (RR, 1.90; 95% CI, 1.76-2.06; and RR, 1.69; 95% CI, 1.48-1.94, respectively).

CONCLUSIONS

Certain visible minorities were associated with higher morbidity and mortality across various vascular surgery presentations. Further research to understand the underpinnings is required.