• Amrita Mukhopadhyay, Robert D'Angelo, Ethan Senser, Kyle Whelan, Christina C Wee, and Kenneth J Mukamal.
• Department of Cardiology, New York University, New York, NY, United States; Department of Medicine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA, United States. Electronic address: amrita.mukhopadhyay@nyulangone.org.
• Am J Emerg Med. 2020 Jul 1; 38 (7): 137313761373-1376.

BackgroundNationally representative studies have shown significant racial and socioeconomic disparities in the triage and diagnostic evaluation of patients presenting to the emergency department (ED) with chest pain. However, these studies were conducted over a decade ago and have not been updated amidst growing awareness of healthcare disparities.ObjectiveWe aimed to reevaluate the effect of race and insurance type on triage acuity and diagnostic testing to assess if these disparities persist.MethodsWe identified ED visits for adults presenting with chest pain in the 2009-2015 National Hospital Ambulatory Health Care Surveys. Using weighted logistic regression, we examined associations between race and payment type with triage acuity and likelihood of ordering electrocardiography (ECG) or cardiac enzymes.ResultsA total of 10,441 patients met inclusion criteria, corresponding to an estimated 51.4 million patients nationwide. When compared with white patients, black patients presenting with chest pain were less likely to have an ECG ordered (adjusted odds ratio [OR] = 0.82, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.69-0.99). Patients with Medicare, Medicaid, and no insurance were also less likely to have an ECG ordered compared to patients with private insurance (Medicare: OR = 0.79, CI = 0.63-0.99; Medicaid: OR = 0.67, CI = 0.53-0.84; no insurance: OR = 0.68, CI = 0.55-0.84). Those with Medicare and Medicaid were less likely to be triaged emergently (Medicare: OR = 0.84, CI = 0.71-0.99; Medicaid: OR = 0.76, CI = 0.64-0.91) and those with Medicare were less likely to have cardiac enzymes ordered (OR = 0.84, CI = 0.72-0.98).ConclusionsPersistent racial and insurance disparities exist in the evaluation of chest pain in the ED. Compared to earlier studies, disparities in triage acuity and cardiac enzymes appear to have diminished, but disparities in ECG ordering have not. Given current Class I recommendations for ECGs on all patients presenting with chest pain emergently, our findings highlight the need for improvement in this area.Copyright © 2019 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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