Table 1.
Characteristics at the time of dialysis initiation among patients who are dialysis dependent in the United States living in counties with at least one hurricane from 1997 to 2017, stratified by patient exposure status
| Characteristic | Overall | Never Exposed to Hurricanea | Exposed to at Least One Hurricane |
|---|---|---|---|
| Patients, n | 187,388 | 157,539 | 29,849 |
| Age, median (IQR) | 65 (53–75) | 65 (54–75) | 60 (49–71) |
| Female, n | 81,939 (43.7%) | 68,801 (43.7%) | 13,138 (44.0%) |
| Race and ethnicity, n | |||
| Hispanic | 34,204 (18.3%) | 28,510 (18.1%) | 5694 (19.1%) |
| Non-Hispanic Black | 65,226 (34.8%) | 52,931 (33.6%) | 12,295 (41.2%) |
| Non-Hispanic White | 84,206 (44.9%) | 72,948 (46.3%) | 11,258 (37.7%) |
| Other | 3752 (2.0%) | 3150 (2.0%) | 602 (2.0%) |
| Year of dialysis initiation, n | |||
| 1997–2003 | 52,646 (28.1%) | 39,591 (25.1%) | 13,055 (43.7%) |
| 2004–2010 | 63,443 (33.9%) | 50,930 (32.3%) | 12,513 (41.9%) |
| 2011–2017 | 71,299 (38.0%) | 67,018 (42.5%) | 4281 (14.3%) |
| Cause of ESKD, n | |||
| Diabetes mellitus | 82,942 (44.3%) | 69,438 (44.1%) | 13,504 (45.2%) |
| Hypertension | 61,171 (32.6%) | 51,405 (32.6%) | 9766 (32.7%) |
| Glomerulonephritis | 14,022 (7.5%) | 11,374 (7.2%) | 2648 (8.9%) |
| Other | 29,253 (15.6%) | 25,322 (16.1%) | 3931 (13.2%) |
| Initial dialysis modality, n | |||
| In-center hemodialysis | 173,334 (92.5%) | 145,557 (92.4%) | 27,777 (93.1%) |
| Home hemodialysis | 1635 (0.9%) | 1479 (0.9%) | 156 (0.5%) |
| Peritoneal dialysis | 12,165 (6.5%) | 10,306 (6.5%) | 1859 (6.2%) |
| Unknown modality | 254 (0.1%) | 197 (0.1%) | 57 (0.2%) |
| ZIP code-level characteristics, median (IQR) | |||
| Percent education college or above | 18.8 (12.5–28.2) | 19.1 (12.6–28.5) | 18.3 (11.9–27.4) |
| Percent below federal poverty level | 13.0 (8.1–20.1) | 12.9 (8.0–20.0) | 13.7 (8.3–20.6) |
| Monthly housing cost (USD) | 939 (751–1188) | 943 (753–1193) | 921 (728–1160) |
IQR, interquartile range; USD, US dollars.
a
Hurricane exposure is defined by exposure to a tropical cyclone with local peak wind speeds of ≥64 knots in the county of residence.