Bariatric surgery costs and implications for hospital margins: comparing laparoscopic gastric bypass and laparoscopic gastric banding.
BACKGROUND
Effective cost reduction strategies require effective analyses of charges.


METHODS
Costs and charges for laparoscopic gastric bypass and laparoscopic gastric banding were compared. Equipment costs, both disposable and reusable, were obtained. Data on the total charges, anesthesiology charges, and hospital charges were obtained; univariate and multivariate analyses were performed.


RESULTS
Disposable equipment costs for laparoscopic gastric bypass totaled $3516.23, for laparoscopic gastric banding they were $4363; the difference stemmed from the $3195 laparoscopic band. Median total charges for the procedures differed by less than $100 (P=0.81). Hospital charges for gastric bypass were about $275 (P=0.087) more for bypass than for banding.


CONCLUSIONS
Effective cost reduction strategies require cost analyses of each individual procedure; results for one procedure cannot necessarily be generalized to another procedure even if overall costs do not differ.
Frezza
Eldo Ermenegildo
EE
Department of Surgery, Division of General Surgery, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, TX 79415, USA. eldo.frezza@ttuhsc.edu
Wachtel
Mitchell S
MS
Ewing
Bradley T
BT
D000761:Anesthesia Department, Hospital; D003365:Costs and Cost Analysis; D004209:Disposable Equipment / Q000191:economics; D015390:Gastric Bypass / Q000191:economics*; D015391:Gastroplasty / Q000191:economics*; D017722:Hospital Charges; D017721:Hospital Costs; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D013781:Texas