Racial Inequity in High-Risk Infant Follow-Up Among Extremely Low Birth Weight Infants

High-risk infant follow-up programs (HRIFs) are a recommended standard of care for all extremely low birth weight (ELBW) infants to help mitigate known risks to long-term health and development. However, participation is variable, with known racial and ethnic inequities, though hospital-level drivers of inequity remain unknown. We conducted a study using a large, multicenter cohort of ELBW infants to explore within- and between-hospital inequities in HRIF participation.

Vermont Oxford Network collected data on 19 503 ELBW infants born between 2006 and 2017 at 58 US hospitals participating in the ELBW Follow-up Project. Primary outcome was evaluation in HRIF at 18 to 24 months' corrected age. The primary predictor was infant race and ethnicity, defined as maternal race (non-Hispanic white, non-Hispanic Black, Hispanic, Asian American, Native American, other). We used generalized linear mixed models to test within- and between-hospital variation and inequities in HRIF participation.

Among the 19 503 infants, 44.7% (interquartile range 31.1-63.3) were seen in HRIF. Twenty six percent of the total variation in HRIF participation rates was due to between-hospital variation. In adjusted models, Black infants had significantly lower odds of HRIF participation compared with white infants (adjusted odds ratio, 0.73; 95% confidence interval, 0.64-0.83). The within-hospital effect of race varied significantly between hospitals.

There are significant racial inequities in HRIF participation, with notable variation within and between hospitals. Further study is needed to identify potential hospital-level targets for interventions to reduce this inequity.