Neighborhood Income Disparities in Unplanned Hospital Admission and In-Hospital Outcomes Among Children with Congenital Heart Disease

Unplanned admissions are associated with worse clinical outcomes and increased hospital resource utilization. We hypothesized that children with congenital heart disease (CHD) from lower-income neighborhoods have higher rates of unplanned hospital admissions and greater resource utilization. Utilizing the Kids' Inpatient Database (2016 and 2019), we included children under 21 years of age with CHD, excluding newborn hospitalizations. CHD cases were categorized into simple lesions, complex biventricular lesions, and single ventricle lesions. Admissions were classified as surgical or non-surgical. A logistic regression model assessed the risk of unplanned hospital admission, mortality, and resource utilization across different neighborhood income levels. Out of 4,722,684 admitted children (excluding newborn hospitalizations), 199,757 had CHD and met the study criteria: 121,626 with mild CHD, 61,639 with complex biventricular lesions, and 16,462 with single ventricle lesions. Surgical admissions comprised 20% (n = 39,694). In the CHD cohort, 27% had planned admissions, while 73% were unplanned. Mortality was higher in unplanned admissions compared to planned admissions (3.0 vs. 0.93%, P < 0.001). Unplanned admissions were more common in the lowest-income neighborhoods compared to the highest-income neighborhoods (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] = 1.4; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.3-1.5; P < 0.001), consistent across different age groups. Higher rates of unplanned admissions in the lowest-income neighborhoods were observed for each CHD category and for both medical and surgical admissions. Median hospitalization length was longer in the poorest neighborhoods compared to the wealthiest (7 days [IQR 3-21] vs. 6 days [IQR 3-17], P < 0.001). In conclusion, children with CHD residing in the lowest-income neighborhoods have increased odds of unplanned hospitalization for both surgical and non-surgical admissions, along with higher mortality and resource utilization.