Burden of present-on-admission infections and health care-associated infections, by race and ethnicity

Background: In the United States incidence of sepsis and pneumonia differ by race, but it is unclear whether this is due to intrinsic factors or health care factors. Methods: We conducted a study of 52,006 patients hospitalized during 2006-2008 at a referral hospital in upper Manhattan. We examined how the prevalence of present-on-admission and health care-associated infection compared between non-Hispanic blacks, Hispanics, and non-Hispanic whites adjusting for sociodemographic factors, admission through the emergency department, and comorbid conditions. Results: Non-Hispanic blacks had 1.59-fold (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.29-1.96) and 1.55-fold (95% CI, 1.35-1.77) risk of community-acquired bloodstream infection and urinary tract infection compared with non-Hispanic whites. Hispanic patients had 1.31-fold (95% CI, 1.15-1.49) risk of presenting with community-acquired urinary tract infection compared with non-Hispanic whites. Controlling for admission through the emergency department, comorbidity, and neighborhood income attenuated the differences in prevalence of infections. Conclusions: We found that health disparities in present-on-admission infections might be largely explained by potential lack of ambulatory care, socioeconomic factors, and comorbidity