Table 2.
Characteristics of children with complicated appendicitis and noncomplicated appendicitis discharged during 2012 in the United States.
| Category | Complicated appendicitis∗ | Noncomplicated appendicitis | Significance | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| N (95% CI) | Proportion | N (95% CI) | Proportion | ||
| Gender | |||||
| Male | 17,726 (17,450–18,002) | 60.8% (60.2%–61.5%) | 35,733 (35,393–36,073) | 58.8% (58.3%–59.2%) | RR: 1.052 (95% CI: 1.031–1.074); p < 0.0001 |
| Female | 11,413 (11,182–11,645) | 39.2% (38.5%–39.8%) | 25,062 (24,751–25,373) | 41.2% (40.8%–41.7%) | |
|
| |||||
| Age groups | |||||
| 0-1 year | 18 (8–28) | 0.1% (0.0%–0.1%) | 35 (21–48) | 0.1% (0.0%–0.1%) | p < 0.0001 |
| 1–5 years∗∗ | 4,183 (4,037–4,328) | 14.4% (13.9%–14.8%) | 2,636 (2,518–2,753) | 4.3% (4.1%–4.5%) | |
| 6–10 years∗∗ | 8,931 (8,723–9,138) | 30.6% (30.0%–31.3%) | 14,327 (14,073–14,582) | 23.6% (23.2%–24.0%) | |
| 11–15 years | 9,731 (9,514–9,947) | 33.4% (32.7%–34.0%) | 20,069 (19,779–20,360) | 33.0% (32.6%–33.5%) | |
| 16–20 years∗∗ | 6,279 (6,102–6,456) | 21.5% (21.0%–22.1%) | 23,728 (23,432–24,024) | 39.0% (38.6%–39.5%) | |
|
| |||||
| Race/ethnicity | |||||
| White∗∗ | 12,685 (12,443–12,927) | 43.5% (42.9%–44.2%) | 30,058 (29,739–30,377) | 49.4% (49.0%–49.9%) | p < 0.0001 |
| Black | 1,839 (1,739–1,938) | 6.3% (6.0%–6.7%) | 3,852 (3,711–3,993) | 6.3% (6.1%–6.6%) | |
| Hispanic∗∗ | 10,097 (9,882–10,312) | 34.6% (34.0%–35.3%) | 18,848 (18,576–19,119) | 31.0% (30.6%–31.4%) | |
| Others∗∗ | 4,520 (4,368–4,672) | 15.5% (15.0%–16.0%) | 8,037 (7,841–8,234) | 13.2% (12.9%–13.5%) | |
|
| |||||
| Regions | |||||
| Northeast∗∗ | 4,267 (4,134–4,401) | 14.6% (14.2%–15.1%) | 12,360 (12,221–12,499) | 20.3% (20.1%–20.5%) | p < 0.0001 |
| Midwest∗∗ | 5,639 (5,493–5,785) | 19.3% (18.9%–19.8%) | 9,326 (9,182–9,470) | 15.3% (15.1%–15.6%) | |
| South∗∗ | 9,792 (9,591–9,993) | 33.6% (33.0%–34.2%) | 19,169 (18,971–19,368) | 31.5% (31.3%–31.8%) | |
| West | 9,443 (9,251–9,635) | 32.4% (31.8%–33.0%) | 19,938 (19,741–20,136) | 32.8% (32.5%–33.1%) | |
|
| |||||
| Median household income for the patient ZIP code | |||||
| 1st quartile∗∗ | 8,430 (8,226–8,633) | 29.5% (28.9%–30.1%) | 16,404 (16,143–16,666) | 27.6% (27.2%–28.0%) | p < 0.0001 |
| 2nd quartile∗∗ | 7,208 (7,019–7,397) | 25.2% (24.6%–25.8%) | 13,945 (13,694–14,197) | 23.4% (23.0%–23.8%) | |
| 3rd quartile | 6,985 (6,799–7,170) | 24.4% (23.9%–25.0%) | 14,313 (14,061–14,564) | 24.0% (23.6%–24.5%) | |
| 4th quartile∗∗ | 5,961 (5,790–6,132) | 20.9% (20.3%–21.4%) | 14,857 (14,609–15,104) | 25.0% (24.6%–25.4%) | |
|
| |||||
| Insurance | |||||
| Government∗∗ | 13,171 (12,926–13,415) | 45.2% (44.5%–45.9%) | 23,251 (22,947–23,555) | 38.2% (37.8%–38.7%) | <0.01 |
| Private∗∗ | 13,009 (12,766–13,253) | 44.6% (44.0%–45.3%) | 30,873 (30,548–31,199) | 50.8% (50.3%–51.2%) | |
| Others∗∗ | 2,961 (2,835–3,086) | 10.2% (9.8%–10.6%) | 6,670 (6,488–6,853) | 11.0% (10.7%–11.3%) | |
|
| |||||
| Hospital type | |||||
| Children's hospital | 7,108 (6,963–7,253) | 24.4% (23.9%–24.8%) | 7,616 (7,470–7,761) | 12.5% (12.3%–12.7%) | RR: 1.16 (95% CI: 1.15–1.17); p < 0.0001 |
| Non-children's hospital | 22,033 (21,747–22,319) | 75.6% (75.2%–76.1%) | 53,179 (52,893–53,465) | 87.5% (87.3%–87.7%) | |
|
| |||||
| Others | |||||
| Length of stay (days)∗∗∗ | 5.25 (5.19–5.31) | 1.77 (1.75–1.80) | Mean difference: 3.49 (95% CI: 3.44–3.54); p < 0.0001 | ||
| Charges ($)∗∗∗ | 44,316 (43,697–44,934) | 28,813 (28,473–29,152) | Mean difference: 15,503 (95% CI: 14,906–16,100); p < 0.0001 | ||
∗Complicated appendicitis = appendicitis with perforation or abscess. ∗∗Groups significantly different in multi-chi-square analyses. ∗∗∗Presented as mean (95% CI).