Disparities in Acute Coronary Syndrome Outcomes in Individuals With Intellectual Disabilities: A Propensity-Matched Analysis of National Inpatient Sample

Background: Individuals with intellectual disabilities (IDs) are at similar risk of acute coronary syndrome (ACS) as compared to general population. However, there is a paucity of real-world data evaluating outcomes of ACS in this population. We sought to study ACS outcomes in individuals with IDs using a large national database.

Methods: Adult admissions with a primary diagnosis of ACS were identified from the national inpatient sample of years 2016-2019. Cohort was stratified according to presence of IDs. A 1 to 1 nearest neighbor propensity score matching using 16 patient variables. Outcomes evaluated were in-hospital mortality, coronary angiography (CA), timing of CA (early [day 0] vs. late [>day0]), and revascularization.

Results: A total of 5110 admissions (2555 in each group) were included in our matched cohort. IDs admissions had higher rates of in-hospital mortality (9 % vs. 4 %, aOR: 2.84, 95 % CI [1.66-4.86], P < 0.001), and were less likely to receive CA (52 % vs. 71 %, aOR: 0.44, 95 % CI [0.34-0.58], P < 0.001) and revascularization (33 % vs. 52 %, aOR: 0.45, 95 % CI [0.35-0.58], P < 0.001). In-Hospital mortality was higher in the ID admissions whether invasive coronary treatment (CA or revascularization) was performed (6 % vs. 3 %, aOR: 2.34, 95 % CI [1.09-5.06], P = 0.03) or not (13 % vs. 5 %, aOR: 2.56, 95 % CI [1.14-5.78], P = 0.023).

Conclusion: Significant disparities exist in ACS outcomes and management in individuals with IDs. More research is needed to understand the reasons for these disparities and develop interventions to improve quality of care in this population.