Socioeconomic Status of Newborns and Hospital Efficiency: Implications for Hospital Payment Methods.

OBJECTIVES: Studies have shown a consistent impact of socioeconomic status at birth for both mother and child; however, no study has looked at its impact on hospital efficiency and financial balance at birth, which could be major if newborns from disadvantaged families have an average length of stay (LOS) longer than other newborns. Our objective was therefore to study the association between socioeconomic status and hospital efficiency and financial balance in that population. METHODS: A study was carried out using exhaustive national hospital discharge databases. All live births in a maternity hospital located in mainland France between 2012 and 2014 were included. Socioeconomic status was estimated with an ecological indicator and efficiency by variations in patient LOS compared with different mean national LOS. Financial balance was assessed at the admission level through the ratio of production costs and revenues and at the hospital level by the difference in aggregated revenues and production costs for said hospital. Multivariate regression models studied the association between those indicators and socioeconomic status. RESULTS: A total of 2 149 454 births were included. LOS was shorter than the national means for less disadvantaged patients and longer for the more disadvantaged patients, which increased when adjusted for gestational age, birth weight, and severity. A 1% increase in disadvantaged patients in a hospital's case mix significantly increased the probability that the hospital would be in deficit by 2.6%. CONCLUSIONS: Reforms should be made to hospital payment methods to take into account patient socioeconomic status so as to improve resource allocation efficiency.

Hospitalization during pregnancy according to childbirth financial coverage: a population-based study. / Hospitalização durante a gravidez segundo financiamento do parto: um estudo de base populacional.

Objective To analyze the occurrence, profile and main causes of hospitalization during pregnancy according to the type of childbirth financial coverage. Method A cross-sectional population-based study carried out with puerperal women through a stratified sample, calculated according to the hospital and the type of childbirth financial coverage source: public sector (SUS) or private (not SUS). The sociodemographic profile, the rate of obstetric complications and the causes of hospitalization were analyzed, coded according to International Classification of Diseases. Results A total of 928 postpartum women were interviewed, of whom 32.2% reported at least one hospitalization during pregnancy. Those with childbirth covered by SUS were less favored because they were the majority among hospitalized women (57.2%), with a higher percentage of adolescents (18.1%), lower education level (91.8%), low family income (39.3%) and fewer prenatal consultations (25.3%). The most frequent causes of hospitalization were "other maternal diseases that complicate pregnancy" (24.6%) (with emphasis on anemia and influenza), urinary tract infection (13.1%), preterm labor (8.7%) and hypertension (7.2%). Conclusion Anemia, influenza, urinary tract infection, preterm labor and hypertension should especially be prevented and treated to avoid hospital admissions during pregnancy, especially among pregnant women covered by SUS.

Patients' costs, socio-economic and health system aspects associated with malaria in pregnancy in an endemic area of Colombia.

Malaria in pregnancy threatens birth outcomes and the health of women and their newborns. This is also the case in low transmission areas, such as Colombia, where Plasmodium vivax is the dominant parasite species. Within the Colombian health system, which underwent major reforms in the 90s, malaria treatment is provided free of charge to patients. However, patients still incur costs, such as transportation and value of time lost due to the disease. We estimated such costs among 40 pregnant women with clinical malaria (30% Plasmodium falciparum, 70% Plasmodium vivax) in the municipality of Tierralta, Northern Colombia. In a cross-sectional study, women were interviewed after an outpatient or inpatient laboratory confirmed malaria episode. Women were asked to report all types of cost incurred before (including prevention), during and immediately after the contact with the health facility. Median total cost was over 16US$ for an outpatient visit, rising to nearly 30US$ if other treatments were sought before reaching the health facility. Median total inpatient cost was 26US$ or 54US$ depending on whether costs incurred prior to admission were excluded or included. For both outpatients and inpatients, direct costs were largely due to transportation and indirect costs constituted the largest share of total costs. Estimated costs are likely to represent only one of the constraints that women face when seeking treatment in an area characterized, at the time of the study, by armed conflict, displacement, and high vulnerability of indigenous women, the group at highest risk of malaria. Importantly, the Colombian peace process, which culminated with the cease-fire in August 2016, may have a positive impact on achieving universal access to healthcare in conflict areas. The current study can inform malaria elimination initiatives in Colombia.

[Delays related to maternal mortality in the department of Santander from 2012 to 2015]. / Demoras en mortalidad materna en el departamento de Santander 2012 a 2015.

OBJECTIVE: To characterize maternal deaths in the department of Santander, Colombia, and the delays that contributed to these deaths during the period 2012-2015, through a systematic review of health care, in order to offer an input that allows proposing actions that contribute to reduce these fatal outcomes. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Descriptive, retrospective, cross-sectional study that determines the characteristics of maternal mortality in pregnant or postpartum women who were administered complete analysis units and whose death was not caused by external or violent causes. RESULTS: The most frequent delay in the 49 cases of maternal deaths was type IV, which refers to the delay in receiving adequate and timely medical treatment (87.8%), mainly due to deficiencies in promotion and prevention strategies (63.2%). The majority of the deaths were avoidable (61.2%) in the puerperium (84%), and in users of the subsidized insurance scheme (57.1%). CONCLUSIONS: Although 98% of mothers were affiliated to the health system (subsidized, contributory, special or exceptional schemes), it was possible to demonstrate that women who were affiliated to the subsidized regime showed a greater frequency of the event, which reflects that there are important opportunities for improvement in the care provided to pregnant women in this type of scheme.

OBJETIVO: Caracterizar las muertes maternas en el departamento de Santander y las demoras que contribuyeron a dichas muertes, durante los años 2012 a 2015, mediante los análisis de las atenciones en salud, con el fin de ofrecer un insumo que permita plantear acciones para disminuir desenlaces fatales. MATERIALES Y MÉTODOS: Estudio descriptivo, retrospectivo, de corte transversal, en el cual se determinaron las características de la mortalidad materna en las mujeres gestantes o en puerperio a quienes se les realizaron unidades de análisis completas y que no fueron por causas externas o violentas. RESULTADOS: La demora que más se presentó en los 49 casos de muertes maternas fue la tipo IV relacionada con recibir un tratamiento médico adecuado y oportuno (87,8%), debido principalmente a deficiencias en los servicios de promoción y prevención (63,2%). La mayor parte de las muertes fueron evitables (61,2%), en el puerperio (84%) y en usuarias del régimen subsidiado (57,1%). CONCLUSIONES: Las mujeres afiliadas al régimen subsidiado presentaron mayor frecuencia del evento, lo cual refleja que existen importantes oportunidades de mejora en la atención que se brinda a las gestantes en el régimen subsidiado.

Vitamin B12 serostatus in Colombian children and adult women: results from a nationally representative survey.

OBJECTIVE: Vitamin B12 deficiency is associated with many adverse health outcomes and is highly prevalent worldwide. The present study assesses the prevalence of vitamin B12 deficiency and marginal deficiency in Colombian children and women and examines the sociodemographic correlates of serum vitamin B12 concentrations in these groups. DESIGN: Cross-sectional, nationally representative survey. SETTING: Colombia. SUBJECTS: Children <18 years old (n 7243), pregnant women (n 1781), and non-pregnant women 18-49 years old (n 499). RESULTS: The overall prevalence of vitamin B12 deficiency (serum vitamin B12<148 pmol/l) and marginal deficiency (serum vitamin B12=148-221 pmol/l) was, respectively, 6.6 % (95 % CI 5.2%, 8.3%) and 22.5% (95% CI 21.1%, 23.9%). Pregnant women had the highest prevalence of deficiency (18.9 %; 95 % CI 16.6 %, 21.5 %) compared with non-pregnant adult women (18.5%; 95% CI 4.4%, 53.1%) and children (2.8 %; 95 % CI 2.3 % %, 3.3 %). In multivariable analyses among children, mean serum vitamin B12 was positively associated with female sex (12 pmol/l higher compared with males; P=0.004), secondary or higher education of the household head (12 pmol/l higher compared with primary or less; P=0.009) and food security (21 pmol/l higher compared with severe food insecurity; P=0.003). In multivariable analyses among pregnant women, mean serum vitamin B12 was positively associated with education of the household head and inversely associated with living in the National territories, Eastern or Pacific regions. CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of vitamin B12 deficiency and marginal deficiency in Colombian women and children is substantial. The burden falls largely on adult women, those with lowest education and those living in the poorest, most rural regions of the country.

Fetal health shocks and early inequalities in health capital accumulation.

Several studies report socioeconomic inequalities in child health and consequences of early disease. However, not much is known about inequalities in health capital accumulation in the womb in response to fetal health shocks, which is essential for finding the earliest sensitive periods for interventions to reduce inequalities. We identify inequalities in birth weight accumulation as a result of fetal health shocks from the occurrence of one of the most common birth defects, oral clefts, within the first 9 weeks of pregnancy, using quantile regression and two datasets from South America and the USA. Infants born at lower birth weight quantiles are significantly more adversely affected by the health shock compared with those born at higher birth weight quantiles, with overall comparable results between the South American and US samples. These results suggest that fetal health shocks increase child health disparities by widening the spread of the birth weight distribution and that health inequalities begin in the womb, requiring interventions before pregnancy.

[The impact of low birth weight related to gestational depression on federal funding of public health: a study in Pelotas, Rio Grande do Sul State, Brazil]. / O impacto do baixo peso ao nascer relacionado à depressão gestacional para o financiamento federal da saúde pública: uma análise do Município de Pelotas, Rio Grande do Sul, Brasil.

Low birth weight is related to morbidity and mortality and sequelae during infant development, thereby impacting health system costs. It is thus important to evaluate factors that influence low birth weight and to estimate their impact on the Brazilian Unified National Health System (SUS). This was a nested prospective study in a cohort of pregnant women who received prenatal care and gave birth in the National Health System in hospitals with ICUs in the city of Pelotas, Rio Grande do Sul State, Brazil. Gestational depression was associated with a fourfold risk of low birth weight (PR = 3.94; CI: 1.49-10.36). Based on the population-attributable fraction, in the overall population an estimated 36.17% of low birth weight infants are born to mothers with an episode of depression during pregnancy, with an estimated cost of more than R$76 million (U$38 million) in Brazil. The study recommends the expansion of preventive and therapeutic mental health care measures for pregnant women and the adequate use of resources in the Unified National Health System to improve neonatal outcomes.

O impacto do baixo peso ao nascer relacionado à depressão gestacional para o financiamento federal da saúde pública: uma análise do Município de Pelotas, Rio Grande do Sul, Brasil / The impact of low birth weight related to gestational depression on Federal funding of public health: a study in Pelotas, Rio Grande do Sul State, Brazil

O baixo peso ao nascer está relacionado com morbimortalidade e sequelas no desenvolvimento infantil, impactando nos custos dos sistemas de saúde, por isso é importante avaliar fatores que o influenciam, estimando seu impacto no Sistema Único de Saúde (SUS). Este é um estudo prospectivo aninhado a uma coorte de gestantes que realizaram pré-natal e parto exclusivamente pelo SUS nos hospitais com UTI da cidade de Pelotas, Rio Grande do Sul, Brasil. Entre os resultados, concluiu-se que mães com episódios de depressão gestacional apresentam quase quatro vezes mais chances de ter um filho com baixo peso ao nascer (RP = 3,94; IC: 1,49-10,36). Valendo-se do cálculo da fração atribuível na população, estima-se que, na população geral, 36,17% dos bebês com baixo peso ao nascer são filhos de mães que tiveram episódio depressivo, estimando-se um custo que pode chegar a mais de R$ 76 milhões no Brasil. Sugere-se que se ampliem as ações preventivas e curativas para as gestantes na área da saúde mental, possibilitando melhor desfecho de saúde dos recém-nascidos, e que se utilizem adequadamente os recursos do SUS.

Low birth weight is related to morbidity and mortality and sequelae during infant development, thereby impacting health system costs. It is thus important to evaluate factors that influence low birth weight and to estimate their impact on the Brazilian Unified National Health System (SUS). This was a nested prospective study in a cohort of pregnant women who received prenatal care and gave birth in the National Health System in hospitals with ICUs in the city of Pelotas, Rio Grande do Sul State, Brazil. Gestational depression was associated with a fourfold risk of low birth weight (PR = 3.94; CI: 1.49-10.36). Based on the population-attributable fraction, in the overall population an estimated 36.17% of low birth weight infants are born to mothers with an episode of depression during pregnancy, with an estimated cost of more than R$76 million (U$38 million) in Brazil. The study recommends the expansion of preventive and therapeutic mental health care measures for pregnant women and the adequate use of resources in the Unified National Health System to improve neonatal outcomes.

Inequities in the use of cesarean section deliveries in the world.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to describe the unequal distribution in the performance of cesarean section delivery (CS) in the world and the resource-use implications of such inequity. STUDY DESIGN: We obtained data on the number of CSs performed in 137 countries in 2008. The consensus is that countries should achieve a 10% rate of CS; therefore, for countries that are below that rate, we calculated the cost to achieve a 10% rate. For countries with a CS rate of >15%, we calculated the savings that could be made by the achievement of a 15% rate. RESULTS: Fifty-four countries had CS rates of <10%, whereas 69 countries showed rates of >15%. The cost of the global saving by a reduction of CS rates to 15% was estimated to be $2.32 billion (US dollars); the cost to attain a 10% CS rate was $432 million (US dollars). CONCLUSION: CSs that are potentially medically unjustified appear to command a disproportionate share of global economic resources.

Adverse perinatal outcomes after the February 27th 2010 Chilean earthquake.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether the February 27th earthquake exposition was associated to adverse perinatal outcomes in Chilean pregnant women. METHODS: We analyzed all deliveries occurred in 2009 (n = 3,609) and 2010 (n = 3,279) in a reference hospital in the area of the earthquake. Furthermore, we investigated pregnant women who gave birth between March 1st and December 31st 2010 (n = 2,553) and we classified them according to timing of exposition. RESULTS: We found a 9% reduction in birth rate, but an increase in the rate of early preterm deliveries (<34 weeks), premature rupture of membranes (PROM), macrosomia, small for gestational age, and intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) after the earthquake, in contrast to the previous year. Women exposed to the earthquake during her first trimester delivered smaller newborns (3,340 ± 712 g v/s 3,426 ± 576 g respectively, p = 0.007) and were more likely diagnosed with early preterm delivery, preterm delivery (<37 weeks) and PROM but were less likely diagnosed with IUGR and late delivery (42 weeks, p < 0.05) compared to those exposed at third trimester. Accordingly, IUGR and preterm deliveries presented elevated healthcare costs. CONCLUSION: Natural disasters such as earthquakes are associated to adverse perinatal outcomes that impact negatively the entire maternal-neonatal healthcare system.

Obstetric antiphospholipid syndrome.

Antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) in pregnancy has a serious impact on maternal and fetal morbidity. It causes recurrent pregnancy miscarriage and it is associated with other adverse obstetric findings like preterm delivery, intrauterine growth restriction, preeclampsia, HELLP syndrome and others. The 2006 revised criteria, which is still valid, is used for APS classification. Epidemiology of obstetric APS varies from one population group to another largely due to different inclusion criteria and lack of standardization of antibody detection methods. Treatment is still controversial. This topic should include a multidisciplinary team and should be individualized. Success here is based on strict control and monitoring throughout pregnancy and even in the preconception and postpartum periods. Further research in this field and unification of criteria are required to yield better therapeutic strategies in the future.

Use and cost of medication in low risk pregnant women.

The objective of the present study is to assess the use of medication by pregnant women; classify them regarding therapy group and its risk category; and identify the cost of these drugs. The sample is formed by 47 pregnant women, in the 20 to 29 year-old age group, from July 2001 to June 2003, in the city of São Paulo. A specific instrument was used for data collection in family charts and others from the Sistema de Informação da Atenção Básica (Primary Care System Information). Average of medications used by pregnant woman was 3.63. Iron sulfate was the most commonly used, followed by antibiotics (78.7%). Regarding risk category, 34.1% of medications belonged to category B and 16.5% to category C. In the calculation of total costs of care, expenses with medication accounted for 11.13%. We have seen the need for assessing further the criteria for use, especially of medications of category C. The higher costs were related to antimicrobials for the treatment of infections.

The costs, benefits, and cost-effectiveness of interventions to reduce maternal morbidity and mortality in Mexico.

BACKGROUND: In Mexico, the lifetime risk of dying from maternal causes is 1 in 370 compared to 1 in 2,500 in the U.S. Although national efforts have been made to improve maternal services in the last decade, it is unclear if Millennium Development Goal 5--to reduce maternal mortality by three-quarters by 2015--will be met. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We developed an empirically calibrated model that simulates the natural history of pregnancy and pregnancy-related complications in a cohort of 15-year-old women followed over their lifetime. After synthesizing national and sub-national trends in maternal mortality, the model was calibrated to current intervention-specific coverage levels and validated by comparing model-projected life expectancy, total fertility rate, crude birth rate and maternal mortality ratio with Mexico-specific data. Using both published and primary data, we assessed the comparative health and economic outcomes of alternative strategies to reduce maternal morbidity and mortality. A dual approach that increased coverage of family planning by 15%, and assured access to safe abortion for all women desiring elective termination of pregnancy, reduced mortality by 43% and was cost saving compared to current practice. The most effective strategy added a third component, enhanced access to comprehensive emergency obstetric care for at least 90% of women requiring referral. At a national level, this strategy reduced mortality by 75%, cost less than current practice, and had an incremental cost-effectiveness ratio of $300 per DALY relative to the next best strategy. Analyses conducted at the state level yielded similar results. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Increasing the provision of family planning and assuring access to safe abortion are feasible, complementary and cost-effective strategies that would provide the greatest benefit within a short-time frame. Incremental improvements in access to high-quality intrapartum and emergency obstetric care will further reduce maternal deaths and disability.

[Health care expenditures among the offspring of cocaine base paste consumers]. / Gastos en salud de hijos de consumidoras de pasta base de cocaína.

BACKGROUND: Health care costs of the offspring of mothers addicted to cocaine are three times higher than those of children not exposed to cocaine during gestation. AIM: To calculate the health care costs of the offspring of addict mothers that consumed cocaine during gestation. To verify the diseases or health conditions in these children, that generated the expenses. MATERIAL AND METHODS: One hundred offspring of addict women consuming cocaine base paste were studied. The health care expenses generated by hospital admissions and ambulatory follow up were calculated. Expenses were expressed in Chilean pesos, according to the value at June, 2000. The fares of the South Orient Metropolitan Health Service were used as a reference. RESULTS: Twenty four of the 100 children were lost from follow up. Among the 76 followed children, 48 were admitted to hospitals in 2.3 (range 1.2) occasions. Mean hospital stay was 21.7 days (range 1-186) and hospital mortality was 4%. Mean expense per hospital discharge was $1,556,098 and per patient was $3,457,995. The monthly expenses per children during ambulatory follow up were $120,372 that increased to $395,200 if family placing was added. CONCLUSIONS: These figures confirm that health care expenses of cocaine addicts offspring are more than three times the cost of a normal child. Primary and secondary prevention of cocaine addiction is urgently needed.