The Influence of Socioeconomic Status on Outcomes of Lower Extremity Arterial Reconstruction.

Abstract Objective While it has been shown that patient socioeconomic status (SES) is associated with the surgical treatments chosen for severe peripheral arterial disease (PAD), the association between SES and outcomes of arterial reconstruction have not been well studied. The objective of this study was to determine if SES is associated with outcomes following lower extremity arterial reconstruction. Methods Patients 40 years and older who had surgical revascularization for severe lower extremity PAD were identified in the Nationwide Readmissions Database, 2010 – 2014. Measures of SES including median household income (MHI) quartiles of patients’ residential ZIP codes were extracted. Factors associated with repeat revascularization, subsequent major amputations, hospital mortality and 30-day all-cause readmission were evaluated using multivariable regression analyses. Results Of the 131,529 patients identified, majority (61%) were male and the average age was 69 years. On unadjusted analyses, subsequent amputations were higher among patients in the lowest MHI quartile compared to patients in the highest MHI quartile (13% vs. 10%, Overall P Conclusion Lower SES is associated with disproportionally worse outcomes following lower extremity arterial reconstruction for severe PAD. These data suggest that improving outcomes of lower extremity arterial reconstruction may involve addressing socioeconomic disparities.