Adjusted association between participant characteristics and frequent or super-frequent emergency department use during the previous 12 months
| ≥4 ED visits | ≥10 ED visits | |
|---|---|---|
| Characteristic | OR (95% CI) | OR (95% CI) |
| Demographics | ||
| Age (years) | ||
| 18–44 | Ref | Ref |
| 45–64 | 0.43 (0.38 to 0.49) | 0.39 (0.30 to 0.51) |
| ≥65 | 0.32 (0.26 to 0.38) | 0.36 (0.24 to 0.53) |
| Female sex | 1.14 (1.02 to 1.27) | 1.12 (0.87 to 1.43) |
| Married | 0.92 (0.83 to 1.03) | 1.21 (0.94 to 1.57) |
| Race/ethnicity | ||
| Non-Hispanic white | Ref | Ref |
| Non-Hispanic black | 1.44 (1.27 to 1.64) | 1.67 (1.30 to 2.13) |
| Hispanic | 0.75 (0.64 to 0.89) | 0.70 (0.50 to 0.98) |
| Non-Hispanic Asian | 0.53 (0.39 to 0.73) | nc |
| Other | 0.96 (0.57 to 1.61) | nc |
| Socioeconomic status | ||
| Currently employed | 0.71 (0.63 to 0.80) | 0.57 (0.42 to 0.77) |
| Poverty–income ratio | ||
| <1.0 | 1.81 (1.49 to 2.20) | 1.61 (1.04 to 2.50) |
| 1.0–1.9 | 1.70 (1.42 to 2.04) | 1.49 (0.96 to 2.32) |
| 2.0–3.9 | 1.38 (1.15 to 1.64) | 1.01 (0.65 to 1.56) |
| ≥4.0 | Ref | Ref |
| Unknown | 1.39 (1.16 to 1.67) | 1.17 (0.77 to 1.79) |
| Education | ||
| <High school | 1.54 (1.29 to 1.84) | 1.41 (0.90 to 2.19) |
| High school graduate | 1.25 (1.04 to 1.50) | 1.15 (0.77 to 1.71) |
| Some college | 1.30 (1.10 to 1.53) | 1.20 (0.79 to 1.82) |
| ≥Bachelors degree | Ref | Ref |
| Health conditions | ||
| Health status | ||
| Excellent–very good | Ref | Ref |
| Good | 1.61 (1.40 to 1.86) | 1.80 (1.25 to 2.60) |
| Fair–poor | 2.98 (2.57 to 3.46) | 2.90 (2.00 to 4.20) |
| Missing | 3.27 (1.06 to 10.11) | nc |
| Body mass index (kg/m2) | ||
| <20 | 1.13 (0.93 to 1.38) | 1.18 (0.80 to 1.75) |
| 20–24.9 | Ref | Ref |
| 25–29.9 | 0.85 (0.74 to 0.97) | 0.72 (0.54 to 0.97) |
| ≥30 | 0.90 (0.78 to 1.05) | 0.71 (0.53 to 0.95) |
| Missing | 0.85 (0.66 to 1.09) | nc |
| Alcohol use | ||
| Lifetime abstainer | Ref | Ref |
| Former | 0.90 (0.77 to 1.05) | 0.66 (0.47 to 0.90) |
| Current light | 0.95 (0.82 to 1.10) | 0.89 (0.67 to 1.19) |
| Current moderate/heavy | 0.94 (0.77 to 1.14) | 0.61 (0.40 to 0.95) |
| Missing | 0.69 (0.47 to 1.02) | nc |
| Cigarette use | ||
| Never smoker | Ref | Ref |
| Current everyday | 1.10 (0.95 to 1.27) | 1.22 (0.90 to 1.66) |
| Former smoker | 1.51 (1.34 to 1.70) | 1.93 (1.53 to 2.42) |
| Hypertension | 1.11 (0.98 to 1.25) | 1.21 (0.94 to 1.55) |
| Diabetes | 1.15 (1.00 to 1.32) | 1.39 (1.06 to 1.83) |
| Coronary artery disease | 1.61 (1.40 to 1.86) | 1.27 (0.94 to 1.70) |
| Stroke | 1.58 (1.36 to 1.83) | 1.43 (1.06 to 1.94) |
| Asthma | 1.64 (1.46 to 1.85) | 1.31 (1.01 to 1.71) |
| Emphysema | 1.19 (0.96 to 1.47) | 1.81 (1.19 to 2.76) |
| Cancer | 1.19 (1.03 to 1.38) | 0.98 (0.71 to 1.35) |
| Access to healthcare | ||
| Place usually go when sick | ||
| None | 1.07 (0.90 to 1.27) | 1.41 (0.96 to 2.09) |
| Emergency department | 7.09 (5.61 to 8.95) | 9.22 (5.88 to 14.4) |
| Outpatient clinic | Ref | Ref |
| Health insurance | ||
| Any private | Ref | Ref |
| Medicaid (±Medicare) | 1.57 (1.34 to 1.85) | 1.61 (1.15 to 2.24) |
| Medicare only | 1.14 (0.95 to 1.38) | 1.03 (0.68 to 1.56) |
| Other | 1.54 (1.18 to 2.02) | 1.50 (0.96 to 2.36) |
| Not covered | 1.54 (1.31 to 1.80) | 1.40 (0.97 to 2.03) |
| No of outpatient visits in past 12 months | ||
| None | Ref | Ref |
| 1–3 | 1.29 (1.00 to 1.64) | 0.74 (0.40 to 1.37) |
| 4–9 | 5.52 (4.42 to 6.90) | 2.11 (1.27 to 3.50) |
| ≥10 | 11.4 (9.09 to 14.2) | 13.0 (7.98 to 21.2) |
| Mental healthcare in past 12 months | 1.37 (1.21 to 1.54) | 1.36 (1.07 to 1.73) |
Bold text indicates p<0.05.
ED, emergency department; nc, not calculable due to <30 observations.