Healthcare use and costs of primary and secondary care patients with prostatitis.
OBJECTIVE
To examine and identify predictors of healthcare use and prostatitis-related and total healthcare costs for primary and secondary care patients with new episodes of care for prostatitis.


METHODS
We compared the use and costs for 270 men with a new episode of care for prostatitis to those of randomly selected male health maintenance organization enrollees matched by age and primary care provider. We examined the episode of care (index visit and next 2 months) and the previous and subsequent years. Patients with prostatitis were interviewed 1 month after the index visit.


RESULTS
Compared with controls, patients with prostatitis had significantly greater total healthcare use (P <0.001) and costs (P <0.05) in each period. The prostatitis costs were only a small proportion of the total costs of the patients with prostatitis and of the difference in costs between patients with prostatitis and controls. The 10% of patients with prostatitis with the greatest total costs accounted for about one half of all costs. White race (P = 0.04), less education (P = 0.02), greater disability (P = 0.003), and greater number of non-pelvic pain sites (P = 0.004) at baseline predicted greater total healthcare costs after the index visit.


CONCLUSIONS
Health maintenance organization enrollees who seek care for prostatitis have greater total healthcare use and costs than do other enrollees of the same age and primary care provider. Most of the difference in costs reflects care for problems other than prostatitis. A small proportion of patients account for most of the costs.
Turner
Judith A
JA
Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA.
Ciol
Marcia A
MA
Von Korff
Michael
M
Rothman
Ivan
I
Berger
Richard E
RE
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002908:Chronic Disease; D016527:Drug Costs; D017050:Episode of Care; D017048:Health Care Costs; D006279:Health Maintenance Organizations / Q000191:economics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011320:Primary Health Care / Q000191:economics* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011472:Prostatitis / Q000191:economics* / Q000628:therapy*; D012044:Regression Analysis; D014861:Washington