Table 2 Cost-of-illness studies included in the review
Income groupa | Setting | Author | Study objective, sample size (n), and population | Key measures and results |
|---|---|---|---|---|
UMIC | Argentina (ARG) | Marcone et al., (2015) [34] | Objective: Estimate the cost of hospitalisations due to aetiology-specific ALRI among children aged ≤ 5 years and costs incurred during their hospitalisations (n = 358) Subgroups analysed: Inpatient only Approach: Prospective cohort design, administrative hospital records | Outcome measure: Direct medical costs Length of stay: 3 days (IQR: 2–4) Results: $529 per hospitalisation episode |
UMIC | China (CHN) | Zhang et al., (2014) [36] | Objective: Estimate the direct medical cost of laboratory-proven RSV children hospitalised in Suzhou, China (n = 2721) Subgroups analysed: Ward and ICU Approach: Retrospective review of medical records | Outcome measure: Direct medical costs Length of stay: 8 days (IQR: 7–9) Results: $565.36 per episode for children seen in ward; $909.65 per episode per children admitted to ICU |
UMIC | Colombia (COL) | Rodriguez-Martinez (2020) [25] | Objective: Evaluate the direct medical costs associated with bronchiolitis hospitalisations caused by infection with RSV among children aged < 2 years in Bogota, Colombia (n = 89) Subgroups analysed: Ward and ICU Approach: Retrospective review of medical records | Outcome measure: Direct medical costs Length of stay: 7 days (+ / − sd 4.4 days) Results: US$518.0 per episode per children seen in ward; $2749.7 per episode per children admitted to ICU |
UMIC | Colombia (COL) | Buendia et al., (2021) [37] | Objective: Evaluate the medical costs associated with bronchiolitis hospitalisations caused by RSV infection among infants aged < 2 years in Colombia (n = 193) Subgroups analysed: Inpatient only Approach: Retrospective review of medical invoice and health records | Outcome measure: Direct and indirect medical costs Length of stay: 5.88 days Results: Cost per episode for children in ICU $580 (direct); $101 (indirect) |
UMIC | Malaysia (MYS) | Chan et al., (2003) [32] | Objective: Determine the direct cost of resource utilisation in the treatment of children hospitalised with RSV chest infection and the potential cost savings with passive immunisation for high-risk infants (n = 216) Subgroups analysed: Full-term and pre-term children Approach: Retrospective review of medical records and resource use data | Outcome measure: Direct medical costs Length of stay: 3.9 days for full-term, 9.0 days for pre-term Results: Direct cost per episode among full-term children: $216; and among pre-term: $2485 |
UMIC | Malaysia (MYS) | Sam et al., (2021) [39] | Objective: Determine the socioeconomic burden of children < 5 years hospitalised with ARI by interviewing patients’ carers and obtaining unsubsidised hospital costs (n = 74) Subgroups analysed: Inpatient only Approach: Prospective study | Outcome measure: Direct medical, non-medical costs, and indirect costs Length of stay: 4 days (IQR: 3–5) Results: Direct medical cost per episode $756; non-medical costs $31; indirect costs $98 |
UMIC | Mexico (MEX) | Comas-Garcia et al., (2020) [40] | Objective: Assess the impact and cost of nosocomial RSV infections in a NICU (n = 24 RSV, 24 control) Subgroups analysed: Inpatient only Approach: Retrospective cohort study | Outcome measure: Direct medical costs Length of stay: 24 days (vs 13 days for control of hospitalised with no RSV infection) Results: Direct medical cost of nosocomial RSV infection among children admitted in NICU $6922 per episode |
UMIC | Thailand (THA) | Bhuket et al., (2002) [33] | Objective: Determine the economic burden in the management of ALRI from the patient’s perspective at Takhli District. Hospital (n = 165) Subgroups analysed: Outpatient and inpatient Approach: Cross-sectional interviews and records review | Outcome measure: Direct medical, direct non-medical, and indirect medical costs Length of stay: NR Results: Cost per episode for outpatient $312 (direct), $118 (non-medical), $73 (indirect); cost per episode for inpatient $1134 (direct), $387 (non-medical), $222 (indirect) |
Lower-middle-income country | Bangladesh (BGD) | Bhuiyan et al., (2017) [35] | Objective: Estimate the costs of severe RSV illness requiring hospitalisation among children < 5 years and the associated financial impact on households in Bangladesh (n = 39) Subgroups analysed: inpatient only Approach: Cross-sectional interviews | Outcome measure: Direct and indirect medical costs, household costs Length of stay: 5 days (IQR: 3–6) Results: Total cost per episode of RSV $94; direct cost per episode $62; indirect cost per episode $19; household out-of-pocket costs $143 (24% of household monthly income) |
LIC | Malawi (MWI) | Baral et al. (2020) [38] | Objective: Estimate the household and health system costs of managing RSV and other respiratory pathogens in Malawian infants (n = 426) Subgroups analysed: outpatient and inpatient Approach: Cross-sectional interviews and medical record reviews | Outcome measure: Direct and indirect medical costs, household costs Length of stay: 3 days (IQR: 2–4) Results: Total cost per episode of RSV $62.26 (inpatient) and $12.51 (outpatient); household costs accounted for 20% of cost per episode which for low-income families was 32% of monthly household income |