Cost-of-illness changes before and after the diagnosis of systemic lupus erythematosus: a nationwide, population-based observational study in Korea.

OBJECTIVES: To estimate the direct healthcare cost progression from before to after systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) diagnosis and to compare healthcare costs by disease severity. METHODS: Patients with incident SLE diagnosed between 2008 and 2018 were identified from the Korean National Health Insurance database. Annual direct healthcare costs for 5 years before and after SLE were estimated and compared with those of age-, sex-, and calendar month-matched (1:4) controls, without SLE. Direct healthcare costs were compared by disease severity of SLE using regression analysis. RESULTS: Among 11 173 patients with SLE and 45 500 subjects without SLE, annual direct healthcare costs per person increased in the year before SLE diagnosis and peaked in the first year after diagnosis. They were 7.7-fold greater in the SLE patients than in the subjects without SLE ($5,871 vs $759). Severe SLE was associated with 3.284-fold (95% CI 3.075-3.507) higher annual costs than mild SLE during the year after diagnosis. Older age (age 60-79 years), lupus nephritis, interstitial lung diseases, and comorbidities such as avascular necrosis and chronic kidney disease were associated with higher annual direct healthcare costs (times [95% CI]) in the first year after diagnosis; aged 60-69, 1.119 [1.034-1.211], aged 70-79, 1.470 [1.342-1.611], 1.794 [1.711-1.881], 1.435 [1.258-1.638], 6.208 [4.541-8.487], and 1.858 [1.673-2.064], respectively. CONCLUSION: Patients with SLE incurred significantly high direct healthcare costs than subjects without SLE during the first year after diagnosis. Disease severity, older age, major organ involvements and comorbidities were associated with increased healthcare costs.

Association between cost-sharing and drug prescribing in Korean elderly veterans with chronic diseases: A real-world claims data study.

This study aimed to investigate the relationship between cost-sharing and drug prescribing and its appropriateness in Korean elderly veterans with chronic conditions. This is a cross-sectional study using real-world claims data. Veterans with primary hypertension or dyslipidemia were compared with two controls with higher levels of cost-sharing. Study subjects (age ≥65 years) were selected through stratified random sampling and matching the individual attributes. The primary outcome was the annual amount of drugs prescribed per patient, and the secondary outcomes included several other measures investigating multifaceted aspects of drug prescribing, medical institution utilization behavior, and prescribing appropriateness. Gamma regression models or logistic regression models were employed. Veterans were prescribed 59%~74% more drugs (exp (ß) = 1.59 [95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.55-1.64] ~ 1.74 [1.70-1.79]) compared to the National Health Insurance (NHI) patients. This was attributed mainly to longer prescribing days (44%) and slightly more prescriptions (6%~7%) than NHI patients. Veterans spent 14%~15% higher medication costs. Veterans were less likely to visit multiple medical institutions by estimates of 0.77 (0.76-0.79) ~ 0.80 (0.79-0.82). Similar but smaller differences were observed between veterans and medical aid (MedAid) patients. The veteran patients showed a more than 50% increased risk of therapeutic duplication than the other two controls (adjusted odds ratio [ORs] = 1.47 [1.37-1.57] ~ 1.61 [1.50-1.72]). Inappropriate drug prescribing was also more common in veterans than the two controls (adjusted ORs = 1.20 [1.11-1.31] ~ 1.32 [1.22-1.43]). In Korean elderly veterans with chronic illnesses, a level of cost-sharing was associated with having more prescribed medicines, and increased inappropriate prescribing.

Relationship between continuity of care and clinical outcomes in patients with dyslipidemia in Korea: a real world claims database study.

Dyslipidemia is a risk factor for atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease and requires proactive management. This study aimed to investigate the association between care continuity and the outcomes of patients with dyslipidemia. We conducted a retrospective cohort study on patients with dyslipidemia by employing the Korea National Health Insurance claims database during the period 2007-2018. The Continuity of Care Index (COCI) was used to measure continuity of care. We considered incidence of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease as a primary outcome. A Cox's proportional hazards regression model was used to quantify risks of primary outcome. There were 236,486 patients newly diagnosed with dyslipidemia in 2008 who were categorized into the high and low COC groups depending on their COCI. The adjusted hazard ratio for the primary outcome was 1.09 times higher (95% confidence interval: 1.06-1.12) in the low COC group than in the high COC group. The study shows that improved continuity of care for newly-diagnosed dyslipidemic patients might reduce the risk of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease.

Comparison of healthcare resource utilization and medical costs between patients with seropositive and seronegative rheumatoid arthritis.

OBJECTIVES: To compare healthcare utilization and medical costs between patients with seronegative (SN) and seropositive (SP) rheumatoid arthritis (RA). METHODS: We conducted a nationwide population study using the Korean health insurance claims database in 2016. We divided patients with RA into SN and SP groups and compared healthcare utilization including medications, medical utilization, and direct medical costs for 1 year between the groups in a cross-sectional analysis. Differences in costs between patients with SPRA and SNRA were assessed using the quantile regression model. We performed longitudinal analysis using data from 2012 and 2016 to examine changes over time. RESULTS: A total of 103,815 SPRA and 75,809 SNRA patients were included in the analyses. The SPRA group used significantly more methotrexate (73.2% versus 30.3%) and biologic agents (7.9% versus 2.9%) than the SNRA group. The number of RA-related outpatient visits [6.0 ± 3.7 versus 4.4 ± 4.0 times/year, standardized difference (SD) = 0.41] and annual medical costs per patient ($1027 versus $450/year, SD = 0.25) were higher in the SPRA group than the SNRA group. Quantile regression results indicated that the incremental cost of seropositivity on total medical costs of RA patients gradually increased as medical costs approached the upper quantile. The annual direct medical costs for each patient between 2012 and 2016 increased in both groups: by 25.1% in the SPRA group and 37.6% in the SNRA group. CONCLUSION: Annual RA-related direct medical costs and RA-related healthcare utilization per patient are higher in patients with SPRA than those with SNRA.

Assessment of the effects of methodological choice in continuity of care research: a real-world example with dyslipidaemia cohort.

OBJECTIVE: To determine if the choice of methodological elements affects the results in continuity of care studies. DESIGN: This is a retrospective cohort study. The association between continuity of care and clinical outcome was investigated using the Continuity of Care Index. The association was explored in 12 scenarios based on four definitions of the relative timing of continuity and outcome measurements in three populations (three Ps × four Ts). SETTING: National Health Insurance claims from all primary and secondary care facilities in South Korea between 2007 and 2015. PARTICIPANTS: Participants were patients diagnosed with dyslipidaemia, made ≥2 ambulatory visits and were newly prescribed with ≥1 antihyperlipidaemic agent at an ambulatory setting in 2008. Three study populations were defined based on the number of ambulatory visits: 10 084 patients in population 1 (P1), 8454 in population 2 (P2) and 4754 in population 3 (P3). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Hospitalisation related to one of the four atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases, including myocardial infarction, stable or unstable angina, ischaemic stroke and transient ischaemic attack. RESULTS: Concurrent measure of continuity and outcome (T1) showed a significantly higher risk of hospitalisation (adjusted HRs: 2.73-3.07, p<0.0001) in the low continuity of care group, whereas T2, which measured continuity until the outcome occurred, showed no risk difference between the continuity of care groups. T3, which measured continuity as a time-varying variable, had adjusted HRs of 1.31-1.55 (p<0.05), and T4, measuring continuity for a predefined period and measuring outcomes in the remaining period, had adjusted HRs of 1.34-1.46 (p<0.05) in the low continuity of care. Within each temporal relationship, the effect estimates became more substantial as the inclusion criteria became stricter. CONCLUSIONS: The study design in continuity of care studies should be planned carefully because the results are sensitive to the temporal relationship between continuity and outcome and the population selection criteria.

An increased disease burden of autoimmune inflammatory rheumatic diseases in Korea.

OBJECTIVES: To estimate the prevalence, medical utilization, and recent changes in the economic burden of autoimmune rheumatic diseases (AIRDs) in Korea. METHODS: Using a nationwide claims database that includes all medical claims made by approximately 50 million Korean residents, the prevalences of seropositive rheumatoid arthritis (RA), ankylosing spondylitis (AS), systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), and others between 2012 and 2016 were calculated. Changes in medical utilization and the direct medical costs of each AIRD from 2012 to 2016 were also evaluated. RESULTS: Based on the data for 2016, seropositive RA was the most common AIRD in Korea with 96,330 cases (188.5/100,000 population), followed by AS (30,006, 58.7/100,000 population), SLE (19,441, 38.0/100,000 population), Behçet's disease (BD, 14,943, 29.2/100,000 population), primary Sjögren syndrome (pSS, 12,018, 23.5/100,000 population), and systemic sclerosis (SSc, 3606, 7.1/100,000 population). In terms of medical utilization, patients with eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis visited outpatient clinics the most frequently (9.8 times/year/patient), while hospitalization was most frequent in microscopic polyangiitis patients (1.0 time/year/patient). Total medical costs for all AIRDs increased from $154,348,011 in 2012 to $262,481,974 in 2016. The annual medical cost per patient in 2016 was the highest in microscopic polyangiitis ($6223/year), followed by psoriatic arthritis ($3,362/year), and granulomatosis with polyangiitis ($2823/year). CONCLUSIONS: In Korea, the most prevalent AIRD is seropositive RA, followed by AS, SLE, BD, pSS, and SSc. The economic burden of AIRDs has risen substantially in the last 5 years due not only to an increase in their prevalence but also to an increase in medical costs per patient.

International descriptive study for comparison of treatment patterns in patients with knee osteoarthritis between Korea and Japan using claims data.

AIM: To compare medication prescriptions for patients with knee osteoarthritis (KOA) in the real world in Korea and Japan. METHODS: This retrospective and descriptive population-based study was conducted using claims data provided by Health Insurance Review and Assessment in Korea and JMDC Inc in Japan. We defined individuals as KOA patients if they had an International Classification of Diseases 10 (ICD10) code for gonarthrosis (M17) and were ≥50 years old in 2012. Korean and Japanese patients were matched for age and sex using frequency matching. Patients were observed for 1 year from the first month of the ICD10 code M17 in 2012. We described baseline characteristics including prevalence of comorbidities, and use of medication for KOA during the observational period. RESULTS: The median age was 59 and the percentage of women was 61.4 in both countries (N = 1 133 138 in Korea, N = 10 498 in Japan). The prevalence of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) usage in Japan (74.7%) was significantly higher than that in Korea (59.0%). Analgesics such as acetaminophen and symptomatic slow-acting drugs for OA (SYSADOA) were significantly more frequently used in Korea (25.8%) than in Japan (9.4%). Intra-articular injection (IAI) of corticosteroids or hyaluronic acid was performed more frequently in Japanese patients (57.3%) than Korean patients (30.5%). CONCLUSIONS: Medication patterns for KOA in Korea and Japan are described for the first time. Use of NSAIDs and IAI were more common in Japan, while other pain killers and SYSADOA were more commonly prescribed in Korea.

Procalcitonin-Guided Treatment on Duration of Antibiotic Therapy and Cost in Septic Patients (PRODA): a Multi-Center Randomized Controlled Trial.

BACKGROUND: The objective of this study was to establish the efficacy and safety of procalcitonin (PCT)-guided antibiotic discontinuation in critically ill patients with sepsis in a country with a high prevalence of antimicrobial resistance and a national health insurance system. METHODS: In a multi-center randomized controlled trial, patients were randomly assigned to a PCT group (stopping antibiotics based on a predefined cut-off range of PCT) or a control group. The primary end-point was antibiotic duration. We also performed a cost-minimization analysis of PCT-guided antibiotic discontinuation. RESULTS: The two groups (23 in the PCT group and 29 in the control group) had similar demographic and clinical characteristics except for need for renal replacement therapy on ICU admission (46% vs. 14%; P = 0.010). In the per-protocol analysis, the median duration of antibiotic treatment for sepsis was 4 days shorter in the PCT group than the control group (8 days; interquartile range [IQR], 6-10 days vs. 14 days; IQR, 12-21 days; P = 0.001). However, main secondary outcomes, such as clinical cure, 28-day mortality, hospital mortality, and ICU and hospital stays were not different between the two groups. In cost evaluation, PCT-guided therapy decreased antibiotic costs by USD 30 (USD 241 in the PCT group vs. USD 270 in the control group). The results of the intention-to-treat analysis were similar to those obtained for the per-protocol analysis. CONCLUSION: PCT-guided antibiotic discontinuation in critically ill patients with sepsis could reduce the duration of antibiotic use and its costs with no apparent adverse outcomes. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT02202941.

Impact of Osteoarthritis on Household Catastrophic Health Expenditures in Korea.

BACKGROUND: Osteoarthritis (OA) is a disease of old age whose prevalence is increasing. This study explored the impact of OA on household catastrophic health expenditure (CHE) in Korea. METHODS: We used data on 5,200 households from the Korea Health Panel Survey in 2013 and estimated annual living expenses and out-of-pocket (OOP) payments. Household CHE was defined when a household's total OOP health payments exceeded 10%, 20%, 30%, or 40% of the household's capacity to pay. To compare the OOP payments of households with OA individuals and those without OA, OA households were matched 1:1 with households containing a member with other chronic disease such as neoplasm, hypertension, heart disease, cerebrovascular disease, diabetes, or osteoporosis. The impact of OA on CHE was determined by multivariable logistic analysis. RESULTS: A total of 1,289 households were included, and households with and without OA patients paid mean annual OOP payments of $2,789 and $2,607, respectively. The prevalence of household CHE at thresholds of 10%, 20%, 30%, and 40% were higher in households with OA patients than in those without OA patients (P < 0.001). The presence of OA patients in each household contributed significantly to CHE at thresholds of 10% (odds ratio [OR], 1.48; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.16-1.87), 20% (OR, 1.29; 95% CI, 1.01-1.66), and 30% (OR, 1.37; 95% CI, 1.05-1.78), but not of 40% (OR, 1.17; 95% CI, 0.87-1.57). CONCLUSION: The presence of OA patients in Korean households is significantly related to CHE. Policy makers should try to reduce OOP payments in households with OA patients.

Development of a Korean Fracture Risk Score (KFRS) for Predicting Osteoporotic Fracture Risk: Analysis of Data from the Korean National Health Insurance Service.

BACKGROUND: Asian-specific prediction models for estimating individual risk of osteoporotic fractures are rare. We developed a Korean fracture risk prediction model using clinical risk factors and assessed validity of the final model. METHODS: A total of 718,306 Korean men and women aged 50-90 years were followed for 7 years in a national system-based cohort study. In total, 50% of the subjects were assigned randomly to the development dataset and 50% were assigned to the validation dataset. Clinical risk factors for osteoporotic fracture were assessed at the biennial health check. Data on osteoporotic fractures during the follow-up period were identified by ICD-10 codes and the nationwide database of the National Health Insurance Service (NHIS). RESULTS: During the follow-up period, 19,840 osteoporotic fractures were reported (4,889 in men and 14,951 in women) in the development dataset. The assessment tool called the Korean Fracture Risk Score (KFRS) is comprised of a set of nine variables, including age, body mass index, recent fragility fracture, current smoking, high alcohol intake, lack of regular exercise, recent use of oral glucocorticoid, rheumatoid arthritis, and other causes of secondary osteoporosis. The KFRS predicted osteoporotic fractures over the 7 years. This score was validated using an independent dataset. A close relationship with overall fracture rate was observed when we compared the mean predicted scores after applying the KFRS with the observed risks after 7 years within each 10th of predicted risk. CONCLUSION: We developed a Korean specific prediction model for osteoporotic fractures. The KFRS was able to predict risk of fracture in the primary population without bone mineral density testing and is therefore suitable for use in both clinical setting and self-assessment. The website is available at http://www.nhis.or.kr.

Prevalence of Gestational Diabetes Mellitus in Korea: A National Health Insurance Database Study.

AIMS/INTRODUCTION: This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) and use of anti-diabetic medications for patients with GDM in Korea, using data of the period 2007-2011 from the Health Insurance Review and Assessment (HIRA) database, which includes the claims data of 97% of the Korean population. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We used the Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System codes provided by the HIRA to identify women with delivery in the HIRA database between 2009 and 2011. GDM was defined according to ICD-10 codes, and patients with pre-existing diabetes between January 1, 2007 and pregnancy were excluded. A Poisson regression was performed to evaluate the trends in annual prevalence rates. RESULTS: The annual numbers of deliveries in 2009-2011 were 479,160 in 2009, 449,747 in 2010, and 377,374 in 2011. The prevalence of GDM during that period was 7.5% in 2009-2011: 5.7% in 2009, 7.8% in 2010, and 9.5% in 2011. The age-stratified analysis showed that the prevalence of GDM was highest in women aged 40-44 years, at 10.6% in 2009-2011, and that the annual prevalence significantly increased even in young women aged 20-29 years during that period (P < 0.05). More than 95% of the patients with GDM did not take any anti-diabetic medication. Among the anti-diabetic medications prescribed for patients with GDM, insulin was most commonly prescribed (for >98% of the patients with GDM on medication). CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of GDM in Korean women recently reached 5.7-9.5% in recent years. This represents a public health concern that warrants proper screening and medical care for GDM in women during the childbearing years.

Osteoporotic Fracture Risk Assessment Using Bone Mineral Density in Korean: A Community-based Cohort Study.

BACKGROUND: Fracture-risk assessment tool (FRAX) using just clinical risk factors of osteoporosis has been developed to estimate individual risk of osteoporotic fractures. We developed prediction model of fracture risk using bone mineral density (BMD) as well as clinical risk factors in Korean, and assessed the validity of the final model. METHODS: To develop and validate an osteoporotic FRAX, a total of 768 Korean men and women aged 50 to 90 years were followed for 7 years in a community-based cohort study. BMD as well as clinical risk factors for osteoporotic fracture including age, sex, body mass index, history of fragility fracture, family history of fracture, smoking status, alcohol intake, use of oral glucocorticoid, rheumatoid arthritis, and other causes of secondary osteoporosis were assessed biannually. RESULTS: During the follow-up period, 86 osteoporotic fractures identified (36 in men and 50 in women). The developed prediction models showed high discriminatory power and had goodness of fit. CONCLUSIONS: The developed a Korean specific prediction model for osteoporotic fractures can be easily used as a screening tool to identify individual with high risk of osteoporotic fracture. Further studies for validation are required to confirm the clinical feasibility in general Korean population.

Mapping health assessment questionnaire disability index (HAQ-DI) score, pain visual analog scale (VAS), and disease activity score in 28 joints (DAS28) onto the EuroQol-5D (EQ-5D) utility score with the KORean Observational study Network for Arthritis (KORONA) registry data.

The aim of this study was to estimate the mapping model for EuroQol-5D (EQ-5D) utility values using the health assessment questionnaire disability index (HAQ-DI), pain visual analog scale (VAS), and disease activity score in 28 joints (DAS28) in a large, nationwide cohort of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients in Korea. The KORean Observational study Network for Arthritis (KORONA) registry data on 3557 patients with RA were used. Data were randomly divided into a modeling set (80 % of the data) and a validation set (20 % of the data). The ordinary least squares (OLS), Tobit, and two-part model methods were employed to construct a model to map to the EQ-5D index. Using a combination of HAQ-DI, pain VAS, and DAS28, four model versions were examined. To evaluate the predictive accuracy of the models, the root-mean-square error (RMSE) and mean absolute error (MAE) were calculated using the validation dataset. A model that included HAQ-DI, pain VAS, and DAS28 produced the highest adjusted R (2) as well as the lowest Akaike information criterion, RMSE, and MAE, regardless of the statistical methods used in modeling set. The mapping equation of the OLS method is given as EQ-5D = 0.95-0.21 × HAQ-DI-0.24 × pain VAS/100-0.01 × DAS28 (adjusted R (2) = 57.6 %, RMSE = 0.1654 and MAE = 0.1222). Also in the validation set, the RMSE and MAE were shown to be the smallest. The model with HAQ-DI, pain VAS, and DAS28 showed the best performance, and this mapping model enabled the estimation of an EQ-5D value for RA patients in whom utility values have not been measured.

Cost-effectiveness of coronary CT angiography in patients with chest pain: Comparison with myocardial single photon emission tomography.

BACKGROUND: Coronary CT angiography (CCTA) has been proven accurate and is incorporated in clinical recommendations for coronary artery disease (CAD) diagnosis workup, but cost-effectiveness data, especially in comparison to other methods such as myocardial single photon emission CT (SPECT) are insufficient. OBJECTIVE: To compare the cost-effectiveness of CCTA and myocardial SPECT in a real-world setting. METHODS: We performed a retrospective cohort study on consecutive patients with suspected CAD and a pretest probability between 10% and 90%. Test accuracy was compared by correcting referral bias to coronary angiography depending on noninvasive test results based on the Bayes' theorem and also by incorporating 1-year follow-up results. Cost-effectiveness was analyzed using test accuracy and quality-adjusted life year (QALY). The model using diagnostic accuracy used the number of patients accurately diagnosed among 1000 persons as the effect and contained only expenses for diagnostic testing as the cost. In the model using QALY, a decision tree was developed, and the time horizon was 1 year. RESULTS: CCTA was performed in 635 patients and SPECT in 997 patients. An accurate diagnosis per 1000 patients was achieved in 725 patients by CCTA vs 661 patients by SPECT. In the model using diagnostic accuracy, CCTA was more effective and less expensive than SPECT ($725.38 for CCTA vs $661.46 for SPECT). In the model using QALY, CCTA was generally more effective in terms of life quality (0.00221 QALY) and cost ($513) than SPECT. However, cost utility varied among subgroups, with SPECT outperforming CCTA in patients with a pretest probability of 30% to 60% (0.01890 QALY; $113). CONCLUSION: These results suggest that CCTA may be more cost-effective than myocardial SPECT.

Epidemiology of hip replacements in Korea from 2007 to 2011.

We analyzed national data collected by the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service in Korea from 2007 to 2011; 1) to document procedural numbers and procedural rate of bipolar hemiarthroplasty (BH), primary and revision total hip arthroplasties (THAs), 2) to stratify the prevalence of each procedure by age, gender, and hospital type, and quantified, 3) to estimate the revision burden and evaluate whether the burden is changed over time. Our final study population included 60,230 BHs, 40,760 primary THAs, and 10,341 revision THAs. From 2007 to 2011, both the number and the rate of BHs, primary THAs increased steadily, whereas there was no significant change in revision THAs. Over the 5 yr, the rate of BHs and primary THAs per 100,000 persons significantly increased by 33.2% and 21.4%, respectively. The number of revision THAs was consistent over time. The overall annual revision burden for THA decreased from 22.1% in 2007 to 18.9% in 2011. In contrast to western data, there were no changes in the number and rate of revision THAs, and the rates of primary and revision THAs were higher for men than those for women. Although 5 yr is a short time to determine a change in the revision burden, there have been significant decreases in some age groups.

Use of drug-eluting stents versus bare-metal stents in Korea: a cost-minimization analysis using population data.

OBJECTIVES: The goal of this study was to perform an economic analysis of a primary stenting with drug-eluting stents (DES) compared with bare-metal stents (BMS) in patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) admitted through an emergency room (ER) visit in Korea using population-based data. METHODS: We employed a cost-minimization method using a decision analytic model with a two-year time period. Model probabilities and costs were obtained from a published systematic review and population-based data from which a retrospective database analysis of the national reimbursement database of Health Insurance Review and Assessment covering 2006 through 2010 was performed. Uncertainty was evaluated using one-way sensitivity analyses and probabilistic sensitivity analyses. RESULTS: Among 513 979 cases with AMI during 2007 and 2008, 24 742 cases underwent stenting procedures and 20 320 patients admitted through an ER visit with primary stenting were identified in the base model. The transition probabilities of DES-to-DES, DES-to-BMS, DES-to-coronary artery bypass graft, and DES-to-balloon were 59.7%, 0.6%, 4.3%, and 35.3%, respectively, among these patients. The average two-year costs of DES and BMS in 2011 Korean won were 11 065 528 won/person and 9 647 647 won/person, respectively. DES resulted in higher costs than BMS by 1 417 882 won/person. The model was highly sensitive to the probability and costs of having no revascularization. CONCLUSIONS: Primary stenting with BMS for AMI with an ER visit was shown to be a cost-saving procedure compared with DES in Korea. Caution is needed when applying this finding to patients with a higher level of severity in health status.

Use of medications and resources for treatment of nausea, vomiting, or constipation in hospitalized patients treated with analgesics.

OBJECTIVES: Hospitalized patients often experience adverse events of the gastrointestinal tract due to analgesic treatment. The objectives of this study were to estimate use of medications for treatment of nausea, vomiting, or constipation (NVC medications) after initiation of analgesic treatment, and to compare differences in length of stay and treatment costs between patients who received NVC medications and those who did not. METHODS: This retrospective cohort study used the Premier Perspective data from January 1, 2005 to December 31, 2007 and stratified inpatients into 4 groups based on the first analgesic agent they were given. Patients were observed for 14 days after the first analgesic use until a regimen change, first use of NVC medication, or hospital discharge, whichever occurred first. Data were analyzed using a Cox proportional hazards model and a generalized linear model. RESULTS: This study found that 239,183 (55.1%) of 434,304 patients received NVC medications after analgesic administration. Compared with oral nonopioid analgesics, the risk of using NVC medication was 4.8 times higher for injectable opioid analgesics after controlling for confounders. Patients who received NVC medications were hospitalized 0.26 days longer (P < 0.0001) at an additional cost of $756 per patient compared with patients who did not receive NVC medications (P < 0.0001). DISCUSSION: Use of an analgesic with improved gastrointestinal tolerability may potentially reduce use of NVC medications and hospital resources.