Ethnic differences in hormone replacement prescribing patterns

To determine whether prescription patterns of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) differ in African-American, Asian, Latina, Soviet immigrant, and white women.

Retrospective review of computerized medical records.

The general internal medicine, family medicine, and gynecology practices of an academic medical center.

Women aged 50 years or older with at least one outpatient visit from January 1, 1992, to November 30, 1995.

Use of HRT was defined as documentation of systemic estrogen use. The main predictor variable was self-identified ethnicity. Age, diagnosis (coronary heart disease, hypertension, diabetes, osteoporosis, or breast cancer), and median income were included in the analysis. Of the 8,968 women (mean age, 65.4 years) included, 50% were white, 20% Asian, 15% African American, 9% Latina, and 6% Soviet immigrants. Whites (33%) were significantly more likely to be prescribed HRT than Asians (21%), African Americans (25%), Latinas (23%), or Soviet immigrants (6.6%), p < 0.01 for each. Multivariate analysis, comparing ethnic groups and controlling for confounding variables, showed that Asians (odds ratio [OR] 0.56; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.49, 0.64), African Americans (OR 0.70; 95% CI 0.60, 0.81), Latinas (OR 0.70; 95% CI 0.58, 0.84), and Soviet immigrants (OR 0.14; 95% CI 0.10, 0. 20) were each less likely to be prescribed HRT than were white women. Although women with osteoporosis were more likely to receive HRT (OR 2.28; 95% CI 1.71, 2.99), those with coronary heart disease were not (OR 0.88; 95% CI 0.68, 1.09).

Physicians at this medical center were more likely to prescribe HRT for white women and women with osteoporosis. Further study is needed to address whether these differences in HRT prescribing result in different health outcomes.