Recent age- and gender-specific trends in mortality during stroke hospitalization in the United States

Background Advancements in diagnosis and treatment have resulted in better clinical outcomes after stroke; however, the influence of age and gender on recent trends in death during stroke hospitalization has not been specifically investigated. We assessed the impact of age and gender on nationwide patterns of in-hospital mortality after stroke. Methods Data were obtained from all US states that contributed to the Nationwide Inpatient Sample. All patients admitted to hospitals between 1997 and 1998 (n = 1 351 293) and 2005 and 2006 (n = 1 202 449), with a discharge diagnosis of stroke (identified by the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision procedure codes), were included. Time trends for in-hospital mortality after stroke were evaluated by gender and age group based on 10-year age increments (<55, 55-64, 65-74, 75-84, >84) using multivariable logistic regression. Results Between 1997 and 2006, in-hospital mortality rates decreased across time in all sub-groups (all P<0.01), except in men >84 years. In unadjusted analysis, men aged >84 years in 1997-1998 had poorer mortality outcomes than similarly aged women (odds ratio 0.93, 95% confidence interval = 0.88-0.98). This disparity worsened by 2005-2006 (odds ratio 0.88, 95% confidence interval = 0.84-0.93). After adjusting for confounders, compared with similarly aged women, the mortality outcomes among men aged >84 years were poorer in 1997-1998 (odds ratio 0.97, 95% confidence interval = 0.92-1.02) and were poorer in 2005-2006 (odds ratio 0.92, 95% confidence interval = 0.87-0.96), P = 0.04, for gender x time trend. Conclusions Over the last decade, in-hospital mortality rates after stroke in the United States have declined for every age/gender group, except men aged >84 years. Given the rapidly ageing US population, avenues for boosting in-hospital survival among very elderly men with stroke need to be explored.