County-Level Hispanic Ethnic Density and Cardiovascular Disease Mortality

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Epidemiology
• Sociology

Background:

• Hispanics are the fastest-growing ethnic group in the U.S.
• Limited understanding of how Hispanic population density affects cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality.
• Need to investigate ethnic density as a factor in health disparities.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine the association between Hispanic ethnic density and CVD mortality rates.
• To determine if this association differs between Hispanics and non-Hispanic whites.
• To identify factors influencing CVD mortality in ethnically concentrated areas.

Main Methods:

• Utilized county-level death data (2003-2012) from the National Center for Health Statistics.
• Included counties with over 20 Hispanic deaths (n=715).
• Applied multivariate linear regression, adjusting for demographic, socioeconomic, and healthcare factors.

Main Results:

• Overall CVD mortality rates were higher in non-Hispanic whites than Hispanics (244.8 vs. 189.0 per 100,000).
• Counties with the highest Hispanic density showed a 60% higher Hispanic mortality rate compared to the lowest.
• Increasing Hispanic ethnic density was strongly associated with higher Hispanic CVD mortality, independent of other factors.

Conclusions:

• Higher Hispanic ethnic density is associated with increased CVD mortality among Hispanics.
• County-level demographic, socioeconomic, and healthcare factors do not fully explain this elevated mortality.
• Further research is needed to understand the mechanisms driving higher CVD mortality in ethnically concentrated Hispanic communities.