(Circulation. 2000;102:e9040.)
© 2000 American Heart Association, Inc.
Cardiovascular News |
Cardiovascular News
Poor Patients Survive Heart Surgery Less Often
Low-income and poorly educated patients are less likely to survive heart surgery than wealthier and better-educated patients, according to a study conducted by researchers at Duke University in Durham, NC. The researchers said that the patients in this group who do survive tend to have a lower quality of life.
In an article published in the November 6, 2000, issue of American Medical News, Chen Tung, MD, a Duke cardiologist and the study’s primary investigator, said that the patients in his study had other risk factors that tended to affect their survival. "They tend to be older. More of them tend to be female, and they also tend to be a sicker population. However, even after we adjusted for these differences, we still saw a difference in terms of both survival and quality of life," he said in a released statement.
Dr Tung said it was possible that wealthier, better-educated people may be more likely to change their diets and exercise habits to a lifestyle that promotes healthier hearts. In previous research, Dr Tung and his colleagues found that patients who had incomes <$10 000 per year also faced monthly medical expenses of $100 to $150, which came out-of-pocket because they were more likely to be uninsured or covered only by the limited Medicaid program. Twenty percent of these low-income patients either cut down or discontinued their prescribed medication because of the cost.
Patients with incomes >$20 000 were more likely to have
medical insurance and, as a result,