Evaluating blunt abdominal trauma with sonography: a cost analysis

Area of Science:

• Medical Imaging
• Trauma Surgery
• Health Economics

Background:

• Blunt abdominal trauma (BAT) evaluation in the US increasingly incorporates ultrasonography (US).
• Assessing the financial impact of US in BAT management is crucial for resource allocation in trauma centers.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the cost-effectiveness of using ultrasonography (US) in the assessment of blunt abdominal trauma (BAT) patients.
• To compare the procedural costs and utilization rates of US, computed tomography (CT), and diagnostic peritoneal lavage (DPL) before and after US implementation.

Main Methods:

• A retrospective analysis comparing BAT patients from two 6-month periods: pre-US implementation (1993) and post-US implementation (1995).
• Tabulation of US, CT, and DPL procedures performed, along with their associated hospital expenditures.
• Statistical analysis using t-tests and chi-squared tests to determine significance (P < 0.05).

Main Results:

• Total procedural costs for BAT evaluation decreased from $254,316 in 1993 to $168,501 in 1995, a savings of $171,630 annually.
• Cost per patient evaluated significantly reduced by 43% from $285.75 in 1993 to $163.12 in 1995 (P < 0.05).
• US utilization increased significantly, leading to an eight-fold reduction in DPL use and a two-fold reduction in CT use.

Conclusions:

• Effective integration of ultrasonography in blunt abdominal trauma protocols leads to significant cost savings.
• The shift towards US in BAT evaluation reduces reliance on more invasive and costly diagnostic methods.
• Implementing US is a cost-effective strategy for managing blunt abdominal trauma patients in major trauma centers.