January 4, 2021

Racial Disparities in COVID-19 Hospitalizations Do Not Lead to Disparities in Outcomes

Category: Article Summary

Topic: Clinical Characteristics and Health Care Setting

Keywords (Tags): clinical characteristics

A retrospective study of 799 patients hospitalized with COVID-19 in Michigan showed that while Black patients had disproportionately higher rates of hospitalization, mortality was not higher in Black patients in multivariate analysis (aOR=0.61). Black patients tended to be younger (62.9 years vs. 71.8), had a higher mean body mass index (32.4 kg/m² vs 28.8), had higher prevalence of diabetes (136/336 vs 130/408), and presented later (6.6 days after symptom onset vs. 5.4) compared to white patients. The authors suggest the higher prevalence of obesity and diabetes in young Black patients may contribute to disproportionate hospitalization rates.

Krishnamoorthy et al. (Nov 28, 2020). Racial Disparities in COVID-19 Hospitalizations Do Not Lead to Disparities in Outcomes. Public Health. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.puhe.2020.11.021