Limitations
The limitations of this study are inherent to the nature of the database. Although administrative databases are a great source of national data, coding systems are prone to oversimplification of pathologies, registry errors, and missed entries. For example, a patient with a chronic type B dissection and degenerative dilation can be coded as an aortic aneurysm in some institutions and as dissection in others. Furthermore, more comprehensive data to address race disparities holistically is not possible with administrative databases such as the NIS database. Another limitation is that decompensated comorbid conditions or other important clinical factors present at admission cannot be differentiated from chronic stable ones, leading to confounding. Also, despite these data demonstrating the short-term advantages of an endovascular approach regardless of race, the longer-term effects are uncertain. Significant racial/ethnic disparities might be essential in explaining clinical outcomes concerning antihypertensive therapy variability, treatment adherence, and surveillance programs.