Osteoporosis Screening Disparities in The Inland Empire of Southern California

Abstract

Introduction: Osteoporosis is a common disease with high morbidity and mortality for fragility fractures. Effective treatments can be initiated prior to the first fracture if osteoporosis is diagnosed by Dual Energy X-Ray screening (DXA). DXA screening is recommended in women aged 65 or older and in men aged 70 or older. Disparities exist in the rates of screening based on ethnicity and gender. The aim of this study was to determine if there are disparities in OSP screening on the basis of ethnicity, gender or primary language spoken. Methods: A retrospective chart review was performed utilizing the Slicer Dicer tool in Epic to determine the rate at which osteoporosis screening is documented as being performed. Demographic data such as gender, age, ethnicity and preferred language were recorded. Results: 93% of women aged 65 or greater were documented as being screened for osteoporosis. 40% of those screened and 52.3% of those not screened were white. 39.1% of women who were screened and 28% of those not screened were Hispanic. 97.4% of men aged greater than 70 years were not screened. The percentage of men screened who identify as Hispanic were lower than those who were not screened (26.3% vs 39.3%) and there were similarly differences in those who identify as White in men, 57.5% of those screened vs. 41.4% of those not screened. Language proficiency were the same in all groups (men and women, screened and not screened). Differences between ethnic groups were calculated using Chi-Square testing and were found to be not statistically significant. Conclusion: Women are documented as having been screened for osteoporosis at a far greater rate than men. In women, Hispanic, White and Black patients were screened at similar rates. Language proficiency did not change the likelihood of being screened for osteoporosis. There are fewer Hispanics in the age groups studied than expected for the general population of the counties.