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Pushing the boundaries of viability: the economic impact of extreme preterm birth

Stavros Petrou1, Jane Henderson, Melanie Bracewell

  • 1National Perinatal Epidemiology Unit, University of Oxford, Old Road Campus, Headington, Oxford OX3 7LF, UK. stavros.petrou@npeu.ox.ac.uk

Early Human Development
|February 10, 2006
PubMed

Insights

Extreme preterm birth significantly increases societal costs by age six, costing an average of £5,658 more per child than full-term births. This highlights the long-term economic impact of prematurity.

Area of Science:

  • Neonatal Medicine
  • Health Economics
  • Societal Impact Studies

Background:

  • Previous economic assessments of preterm birth primarily focused on short-term health service costs.
  • These earlier studies covered a wide spectrum of prematurity, not specifically extreme preterm births.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To estimate the comprehensive societal costs associated with extreme preterm birth.
  • Focus on the economic impact during the sixth year after birth.

Main Methods:

  • Societal costs were calculated by applying unit costs to resource use data (health, social, other) for children born extremely preterm (20-25 weeks gestation) and at full term.
  • Data from 241 extremely preterm infants and 160 full-term infants in the UK and Ireland were analyzed.
  • Rigorous sensitivity analysis and regression models were used to assess the impact of gestational age and covariates on costs.

Main Results:

  • Mean societal costs in the sixth year were £9,541 for the extreme preterm group versus £3,883 for the full-term group, a statistically significant difference of £5,658.
  • Extreme preterm birth, particularly when considering sex-specific factors, was a strong predictor of higher societal costs after adjusting for covariates.
  • The findings underscore the substantial economic burden of extreme prematurity.

Conclusions:

  • The study provides crucial data for effective service planning and resource allocation for extremely preterm infants.
  • Results can inform future economic evaluations of interventions aimed at preventing extreme preterm birth or mitigating its consequences.
  • Understanding these long-term societal costs is vital for healthcare policy and support systems.
Abstract

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