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Purpose: This study aims to examine disparities among heart transplant recipients in the United States, utilizing the latest data from the National Inpatient Sample (NIS)., Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort analysis of NIS discharge data (2017-2020), focusing on adult end-stage heart failure (ESHF) patients, identified using the ICD-10 CM code I50.84. Our analysis included four racial groups: White, Black, Hispanic, and Asian. We employed univariable and multivariate regression analyses to determine the unadjusted and adjusted odds of heart transplantation across these racial groups, using Stata version 14.2 for statistical calculations., Results: Of 110,015 ESHF patients, 3,695 received heart transplants. Predominantly, recipients were male with a Charlson comorbidity index ≥3 and covered by private insurance. Transplants mainly occurred in large, teaching hospitals. Despite minor differences in age and median household income among races, baseline patient and hospital characteristics showed no significant variations. Compared to Whites, Blacks had a significantly lower transplant rate (AOR: 0.6; 95  % CI: 0.46-0.77; p < 0.001), while Hispanics and Asians showed no significant disparities. Mean ages varied slightly across groups (p = 0.0047), yet inpatient length of stay and hospitalization costs did not significantly differ., Conclusion: Our findings highlight a significant disparity in heart transplant rates between Black and White ESHF patients in the U.S., with Black patients less likely to receive transplants compared to their White counterparts., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Objective: Little is known about risk factors associated with COVID-19 infection among Arab American people. We aimed to understand the predictors of receiving a positive COVID-19 test result and being admitted to the hospital for COVID-19 among Arab American adults using data from a hospital near an Arab ethnic enclave., Methods: We used electronic medical record data for Arab American adults aged ≥18 years from March 1, 2020, through January 31, 2021, at Sharp Grossmont Hospital in La Mesa, California. The primary outcomes were receiving a positive COVID-19 test result and being admitted to the hospital for COVID-19. We ran logistic regression models with individual- and population-level risk factors to determine the odds of each primary outcome., Results: A total of 2744 Arab American adults were tested for COVID-19, of whom 783 (28.5%) had a positive test result. In the fully adjusted model, women had lower odds of receiving a positive test result than men (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] = 0.77; 95% CI, 0.64-0.92), and adults living in high-poverty areas had higher odds of receiving a positive test result than adults in lower-poverty areas (aOR = 1.25; 95% CI, 1.04-1.51). Of the 783 Arab American adults with data on admission, 131 (16.7%) were admitted. For every 1-unit increase in the Charlson Comorbidity Index, the odds of admission increased by 66% (aOR = 1.66; 95% CI, 1.36-2.04)., Conclusion: The risk of receiving a positive test result for COVID-19 was higher among Arab American adults living in high-poverty areas than in lower-poverty areas. The risk of admission was directly related to overall health status. Future work should aim to understand the barriers to prevention and testing in this population.