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Abstract

A study in the general population has shown a higher acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) mortality among blacks. We studied whether black blunt-trauma patients experience different ARDS incidence, ARDS-associ-ated mortality, or ARDS case fatality rates.National Trauma Data Bank (NTDB) extracts of blunt-trauma patients with Injury Severity Score (ISS) greater than 16 and length of stay greater than 3 days were used for this study. ARDS incidence, ARDS-associated mortality, and ARDS case fatality rates were calculated for Caucasians, blacks, and Hispanics, and compared using χ2. In order to adjust for con-founders (age, gender, comorbidities, hypotension, and injury severity) multiple logistic regression models were built for the 3 outcomes. Odd ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated. A p < .05 was used for all statistics.Among the 96 350 patients studied, ARDS incidence, ARDS-associated mortality, and ARDS case fatality rates were 0.92%, 0.18%, and 19.1%, respectively. Differences among racial/ethnic groups were found between blacks and Caucasians for ARDS incidence (0.70% vs 0.93%) and between Hispanic and Caucasians for ARDS-associated mortality (0.27% vs 0.17%). Multiple logistic regression models adjusting for confounders, using Caucasian race/ethnicity as a reference, revealed a protective effect of black race/ethnicity for ARDS incidence (OR, 0.73; 95% CI, 0.580.91). Hispanics, but not blacks, experienced higher odds of adjusted ARDS-associated mortality (OR, 1.76; 95% CI, 1.152.62) and ARDS case fatality (OR, 1.92; 95% CI, 1.17-3.09).Black race/ethnicity is not associated with ARDS mortality among blunt-trauma patients. Black race/ ethnicity seems to have a protective effect in relation to ARDS incidence. Hispanic ethnicity was associated with a higher mortality and case fatality rates for ARDS.