Direct medical costs of pediatric asthma exacerbations requiring hospital attendance in a middle-income country

ABSTRACT

INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES: With the aim of making informed decisions on resource allocation, there is a critical need for studies that provide accurate information on hospital costs for treating pediatric asthma exacerbations, mainly in middle-income countries (MICs). The aim of the present study was to evaluate the direct medical costs associated with pediatric asthma exacerbations requiring hospital attendance in Bogota, Colombia. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We reviewed the available electronic medical records (EMRs) for all pediatric patients who were admitted to the Fundacion Hospital de La Misericordia with a discharge principal diagnosis pediatric asthma exacerbation over a 24-month period from January 2016 to December 2017. Direct medical costs of pediatric asthma exacerbations were retrospectively collected by dividing the patients into four groups those admitted to the emergency department (ED) only; those admitted to the pediatric ward (PW); those admitted to the pediatric intermediate care unit (PIMC); and those admitted to the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU). RESULTS: A total of 252 patients with a median (IQR) age of 5.0 (3.0-7.0) years were analyzed, of whom 142 (56.3%) were males. Overall, the median (IQR) cost of patients treated in the ED, PW, PIMC, and PICU was US$38.8 (21.1-64.1) vs. US$260.5 (113.7-567.4) vs. 1212.4 (717.6-1609.6) vs. 2501.8 (1771.6-3405.0), respectively this difference was statistically significant (p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The present study helps to further our understanding of the economic burden of pediatric asthma exacerbations requiring hospital attendance among pediatric patients in a MIC

RESUMEN

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