Mortality outcomes among status Aboriginals and whites with heart failure

Aboriginals have more cardiovascular risk factors than do non-Aboriginals that predispose them to the development of heart failure (HF). Whether long-term mortality outcomes and health care use differ between Aboriginals and whites with HF is unknown.

The population consisted of all Albertans aged ≥ 20 years with an incident HF hospitalization between 2000 and 2008. Aboriginal status is recorded in the Alberta Health Care Insurance Registry and white ethnicity was determined using previously validated surname analysis algorithms. Cox and logistic regression was used to examine mortality outcomes after adjustment for key variables.

Compared with whites (n = 42,288), status aboriginal patients with HF (n = 1158) were significantly younger (mean age, 62.6 vs 75.4 years; P < 0.0001) and had higher rates of diabetes (45% vs 29%; P < 0.0001) and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (40% vs 36%; P < 0.0001) but lower rates of most other comorbidities. Although crude mortality rates were lower in status Aboriginals than in whites at 1 year (22% vs 31%; P < 0.0001) and at 5 years (48% vs 59%; P < 0.0001), after adjustment, status Aboriginals exhibited increased mortality at 1 year (adjusted odds ratio [OR], 1.18; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.01-1.38) and 5 years (adjusted OR, 1.39; 95% CI, 1.16-1.67). Compared with whites, status Aboriginals used more health care resources in the years before and after an incident HF hospitalization but less specialist care.

Although status Aboriginals hospitalized for the first time with HF are > 10 years younger, they use more health care resources and have increased short- and long-term mortality compared with their white counterparts.