The costs of cardiorespiratory disease episodes in a study of emergency department use.
OBJECTIVE
The average per person direct cost of illness of cardiorespiratory disease episodes was estimated based on a prospective study of emergency department visits.


METHODS
Economic modelling of health care costs using prospectively collected resource utilization data (9/1/94 to 8/31/95) from hospital emergency department visitors assigned a diagnosis of asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), respiratory infections or cardiac conditions.


RESULTS
The total direct costs (1997 CDN$) [95% C.I.] per patient were $1,043.55 [$922.65, $1,164.47] for asthma, $1,690.11 [$1,276.92, $2,103.30] for COPD, $676.50 [$574.46, $778.54] for respiratory infections, and $3,318.74 [$2,937.72, $3,699.76] for cardiac conditions.


CONCLUSIONS
This study showed that on average, patients diagnosed with a cardiac condition had the highest total direct cost. Hospitalization cost was the largest component of costs for all diagnoses except asthma, for which medications were the single largest component of direct costs.
Anis
A H
AH
Centre for Health Evaluation and Outcome Sciences, St. Paul's Hospital, Vancouver, BC. anis@cheos.ubc.ca
Guh
D
D
Stieb
D
D
Leon
H
H
Beveridge
R C
RC
Burnett
R T
RT
Dales
R E
RE
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001249:Asthma / Q000191:economics* / Q000628:therapy; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D017281:Cost of Illness; D004636:Emergency Service, Hospital / Q000191:economics* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D017050:Episode of Care; D005260:Female; D006331:Heart Diseases / Q000191:economics*; D006801:Humans; D008173:Lung Diseases, Obstructive / Q000191:economics* / Q000628:therapy; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012141:Respiratory Tract Infections / Q000191:economics* / Q000628:therapy