Racial disparities in endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) utilization in the United States: are we getting better?

Background: We identified trends of inpatient therapeutic endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) in the United States (US), focusing on outcomes related to specific patient demographics. Methods: The National Inpatient Sample was utilized to identify all adult inpatient ERCP in the US between 2007–2018. Trends of utilization and adverse outcomes were highlighted. P-values ≤ 0.05 were considered statistically significant. Results: We noted a rising trend for total inpatient ERCP in the US from 126,921 in 2007 to 165,555 in 2018 (p = 0.0004), with a significant increase in utilization for Blacks, Hispanics, and Asians. Despite an increasing comorbidity burden [Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI) score ≥ 2], the overall inpatient mortality declined from 1.56% [2007] to 1.46% [2018] without a statistically significant trend (p = 0.14). Moreover, there was a rising trend of inpatient mortality for Black and Hispanic populations, while a decline was noted for Asians. After a comparative analysis, we noted higher rates of inpatient mortality for Blacks (2.4% vs 1.82%, p = 0.0112) and Hispanics (1.17% vs 0.83%, p = 0.0052) at urban teaching hospitals between July toand September compared to the October to June study period; however, we did not find a statistically significant difference for the Asian cohort (1.9% vs 2.10%, p = 0.56). The mean length of stay (LOS) decreased from 7 days in 2007 to 6 days in 2018 (p < 0.0001), while the mean total hospital charge (THC) increased from $48,883 in 2007 to $85,909 in 2018 (p < 0.0001) for inpatient ERCPs. Compared to the 2015–2018 study period, we noted higher rates of post-ERCP pancreatitis (27.76% vs 17.25%, p < 0.0001) from 2007–2014. Conclusion: Therapeutic ERCP utilization and inpatient mortality were on the rise for a subset of the American minority population, including Black and Hispanics.