Race Is an Independent Predictor of Length of Stay among Geriatric Trauma Patients

INTRODUCTION: The association of race and outcomes in trauma has been shown in certain injuries. We sought to evaluate the association of race and hospital length of stay among geriatric trauma patients. METHODS: This was a retrospective review of geriatric trauma patients admitted to our Level I trauma center from January 2018 to December 2019. After IRB approval was obtained, data collected included vital signs, demographics, Injury Severity Score, and length of stay. Race was categorized into 3 groups, white, Black, and other. Length of stay was categorized into 7 days or less and more than 7 days. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was performed for the association of race and length of stay, controlling for injury severity. RESULTS: A total of 2,670 geriatric (older than 65 years) trauma patients were admitted to the hospital during the study period. There were 2,355 (88.2%) white, 53 (1.9%) Black, and 262 (9.9%) other races. There were 64% women, the median Injury Severity Score was 6 (4, 9), and the mean age was 81 ± 8 years. The median length of stay was 5 (2, 7) days. Race was an independent predictor of length of stay (p = 0.019). Compared with white race, Black race was associated with staying in the hospital for longer than 7 days (odds ratio 2.06, p = 0.013), and “other” was not (odds ratio 1.24, p = 0.15). Injury Severity Score was also significantly associated with length of stay of more than 7 days (odds ratio 1.05, p ≤ 0.001). CONCLUSION: Race is associated with length of stay among geriatric trauma patients. Black race is an independent predictor of length of stay longer than 7 days.