Table I.
Baseline characteristics
| Variable | Follow-up method | P value | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| In-person (n = 8848) | Phone call (n = 1222) | LTF (n = 1239) | ||
| Age, years | 73.5 ± 0.1 | 74.2 ± 0.2 | 74.3 ± 0.3 | .02 |
| Male gender | 82.0 (7252) | 81.3 (993) | 78.7 (974) | .02 |
| Race | .02 | |||
| White | 92.8 (8213) | 93.3 (1138) | 91.9 (1137) | |
| Black | 3.90 (345) | 2.38 (29) | 5.17 (64) | |
| Asian | 0.99 (88) | 1.15 (14) | 0.65 (8) | |
| Other | 0.24 (21) | 0.25 (3) | 0.08 (1) | |
| Unknown | 1.03 (180) | 2.95 (36) | 2.18 (27) | |
| Body mass index, kg/m2 | 28.3 ± 0.1 | 27.5 ± 0.2 | 27.5 ± 0.2 | .48 |
| Maximum AP aortic diameter, mm | 55.6 ± 0.2 | 55.8 ± 0.3 | 57.5 ± 0.5 | <.001 |
| Insurance status | <.001 | |||
| Medicare | 64.6 (3627) | 63.8 (491) | 66.5 (470) | |
| Medicaid | 1.46 (82) | 1.69 (13) | 2.26 (16) | |
| Commercial | 30.9 (1733) | 28.8 (222) | 27.3 (193) | |
| Military/VA | 0.53 (30) | 1.43 (11) | 1.84 (13) | |
| None | 1.73 (97) | 3.12 (24) | 0.57 (4) | |
| Self-pay | 0.80 (45) | 1.17 (9) | 1.56 (11) | |
| ASA class | <.001 | |||
| 1 | 0.35 (28) | 0 (0) | 0.25 (3) | |
| 2 | 9.32 (752) | 5.94 (66) | 7.59 (90) | |
| 3 | 70.2 (5662) | 70.1 (779) | 68.1 (807) | |
| 4 | 20.1 (1622) | 24.0 (267) | 23.9 (283) | |
| 5 | 0.06 (5) | 0 (0) | 0.17 (2) | |
| Unfit for open surgery | 16.3 (1439) | 19.3 (235) | 21.1 (260) | <.001 |
| Comorbidities | ||||
| Hypertension | 83.9 (7415) | 82.4 (1006) | 84.1 (1039) | .38 |
| Diabetes | 19.9 (1756) | 17.9 (218) | 19.9 (245) | .25 |
| Smoking | .02 | |||
| Never | 14.2 (1252) | 12.4 (151) | 13.6 (168) | |
| Prior | 56.3 (4974) | 56.1 (685) | 52.8 (652) | |
| Current | 29.5 (2606) | 31.6 (386) | 33.7 (416) | |
| CAD | 29.6 (2619) | 27.1 (331) | 31.8 (391) | 0.04 |
| CHF | 10.6 (932) | 10.5 (128) | 14.8 (183) | <0.001 |
| COPD | 30.3 (2687) | 31.7 (387) | 34.4 (425) | 0.01 |
| Dialysis | 0.94 (83) | 1.06 (13) | 2.18 (27) | 0.002 |
| Pertinent surgical history | ||||
| Prior CABG or PCI | 36.3 (2053) | 34.3 (257) | 36.5 (255) | 0.53 |
| Prior aortic surgery | 3.56 (315) | 5.08 (62) | 4.29 (53) | 0.001 |
| Prior aneurysm repair | 3.19 (282) | 3.11 (38) | 3.80 (47) | .51 |
| Prior PVI | 5.38 (475) | 3.93 (48) | 4.68 (58) | .07 |
| Living status | ||||
| Home | 99.0 (8745) | 98.4 (1202) | 97.5 (1205) | <.001 |
| Nursing home | 0.96 (85) | 1.56 (19) | 2.43 (30) | |
| Homeless | 0.03 (3) | 0 (0) | 0.08 (1) | |
| Functional status | <.001 | |||
| Ambulatory | 93.6 (4979) | 92.5 (682) | 87.1 (626) | |
| Ambulatory with assistance | 5.56 (296) | 7.19 (53) | 10.4 (75) | |
| Wheelchair dependent | 0.75 (40) | 0.27 (2) | 2.23 (16) | |
| Bedridden | 0.13 (7) | 0 (0) | 0.28 (2) | |
AP, Anteroposterior; ASA, American Society of Anesthesiologists; CABG, coronary artery bypass graft; CAD, coronary artery disease; CHF, congestive heart failure; COPD, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; LTF, lost to follow-up; PCI, percutaneous coronary intervention; PVI, peripheral vascular intervention; VA, Veterans Administration.
Categorical data are presented as percentage (number). Continuous data are presented as mean ± standard error.