Introduction Systematic disparities in misdiagnosis of dementia across racial/ethnic groups have implications for health disparities. We compared the risk of dementia under‐ and overdiagnosis in clinical settings across racial/ethnic groups from 2000 to 2010. Methods We linked fee‐for‐service Medicare claims to participants aged ≥70 from the nationally representative Health and Retirement Study. We classified dementia status using an algorithm with similar sensitivity and specificity across racial/ethnic groups and assigned clinical dementia diagnosis status using ICD‐9‐CM codes from Medicare claims. Multinomial logit models were used to estimate relative risks of clinical under‐ and overdiagnosis between groups and over time. Results Non‐Hispanic blacks had roughly double the risk of underdiagnosis as non‐Hispanic whites. While primary analyses suggested a shrinking disparity over time, this was not robust to sensitivity analyses or adjustment for covariates. Risk of overdiagnosis increased over time in both groups. Discussion Our results suggest that efforts to reduce racial disparities in underdiagnosis are warranted.

Perioperative infectious disease comprises an independent risk factor for survival of patients with ovarian cancer.

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVE To evaluate the relationship between self‐reported hearing loss and nonfatal fall‐related injury in a nationally representative sample of community‐dwelling adults living in the United States. DESIGN Cross‐sectional analysis of national survey data. SETTING National Health Interview Survey (2016). PARTICIPANTS A total of 30 994 community‐dwelling adults in the United States, aged 18 years and older. MEASUREMENTS We evaluated the association between self‐reported hearing loss and nonfatal injury resulting from a fall in the previous 3 months. We used multivariate logistic regression to calculate adjusted odds ratios (ORs) and evaluated effect measure modification by age. RESULTS The odds of nonfatal fall‐related injury were 1.60 times higher among respondents with hearing loss compared to respondents without hearing loss (95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.20‐2.12; P = .0012). Results were unchanged when adjusting for demographics (OR = 1.59; 95% CI = 1.18‐2.15; P = .002). After adjustment for cardiovascular risk factors, cardiovascular disease, visual impairment, and limitation caused by nervous system/sensory organ conditions and depression, anxiety, or another emotional problem, the OR fell to 1.27 (95% CI = 0.92‐1.74; P = .14). In the fully adjusted model, including adjustment for vestibular vertigo, there was little support to link hearing loss and fall‐related injury (OR = 1.16; 95% CI = 0.84‐1.60; P = .36). Effect modification by age was not observed. CONCLUSIONS Self‐reported hearing loss may be a clinically useful indicator of increased fall risk, but treatment for hearing loss is unlikely to mitigate this risk, given that there is no independent association between self‐reported hearing loss and nonfatal falls after accounting for vestibular function and other potential confounders.

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