Socioeconomic Distressed Communities Index Associated with Higher Burden of Amputation in Diabetic Peripheral Arterial Disease

Abstract

Category:Diabetes; OtherIntroduction/Purpose:The prevalence of diabetes and one of its complications, peripheral arterial disease (PAD), is increasing. Diabetic PAD is known to lead to high rates of lower extremity amputations. Diabetes disproportionately affects people of low socioeconomic status. The Distressed Community Index (DCI) is a proxy social risk factor, calculated at the zip code level as a function of seven metrics of community economic well-being: no high school diploma, housing vacancy rate, unemployment rate, poverty rate, median income ratio, change in employment, and change in establishments. Higher DCI has been linked to longer operative times, longer hospital length of stay, and increased incidence of postoperative complications. This analysis sought to analyze the impact of a socioeconomic risk factor, DCI, on amputation rate in patients with diabetic PAD.Methods:Data from a regional hospital abstract reporting system was obtained from the State Department of Health. It was sorted to include patient records with a diagnosis of peripheral arterial disease (ICD-10-CM diagnostic codes). Data was further stratified by diagnosis of diabetic PAD and DCI score. DCI scores were obtained from the Economic Innovation Group.Procedure codes were used to identify amputations starting with ‘detachment at [R/L] foot, complete, open approach’ and including all progressively distal amputations (ICD-10-PCS codes). Statistical analysis was performed using XLSTAT, significance was assigned at alpha of 0.05.Results:From 2016 to 2018, there were 33664 patients requiring inpatient treatment with a diagnosis of PAD. 13261 patients (39.4%) had diabetic PAD, 3078 patients (9.1%) originated from a zip code with a DCI score greater than or equal to 75 (top quartile) and 1394 patients (4.1%) had diabetic PAD and DCI greater than 75. While patients with diabetic PAD and a DCI less than 75 had approximately the same rate of amputations as all patients with diabetic PAD (15.3% and 15.7%, respectively), patients with diabetic PAD and a DCI greater than 75 were 1.30 times more likely (p=0.0003) to require amputation than all patients with diabetic PAD (19.1% and 15.7% overall amputation rates, respectively). The relationship with DCI was not significant in non- diabetic PAD patients.Conclusion:Approximately one in five patients presenting for inpatient treatment with a diagnosis of diabetic PAD originating from a zip code with a DCI score greater than or equal to 75 required a lower extremity amputation. Though diabetes by itself was a stronger risk factor for amputation (OR 8.24, p<0.0001) than DCI in the comprehensive PAD patient population, a patient with a high DCI score in the diabetic PAD population was significantly more likely to require amputation. DCI is a proxy social risk factor providers can use to preemptively identify patients at increased risk of lower extremity amputation secondary to PAD.