title: [Small patients--big costs: the economic aspects of treating young children with renal failure].
abstract: Since 1985, 20 children have been followed with early onset of chronic renal failure (plasma creatinine > 120 mumol/l in first year of life). So far, 10 and 7 patients underwent peritoneal dialysis and renal transplantation, respectively. The aim of this study was to assess the overall costs. The recorded costs comprised both the direct costs of dialysis and transplantation, and the costs of all medical and psychosocial measures. The annual median costs of conservative treatment, peritoneal dialysis, the year of transplantation, and follow-up after transplantation amounted to 30,000, 93,000, 130,000 and 28,000 Swiss francs, respectively. The youngest patients caused the highest expenses. The active treatment permitted not only survival, but--in most patients--also a normal cognitive and psychosocial development.
authors.affiliation: Universitäts-Kinderklinik Zürich.
authors.forename: T J
authors.initials: TJ
authors.lastname: Neuhaus
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Goetschel
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Leumann
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003365:Costs and Cost Analysis; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007676:Kidney Failure, Chronic / Q000191:economics* / Q000534:rehabilitation; D016030:Kidney Transplantation / Q000191:economics; D008297:Male; D010530:Peritoneal Dialysis / Q000191:economics; D013557:Switzerland
vernacular_title: Kleine Patienten--grosse Kosten: ökonomische Aspekte der Behandlung niereninsuffizienter Kleinkinder.