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[Cost analysis of cardiac transplantation in a Spanish hospital]
Antoni Trilla1, María J Bertrán, Andreu Prat
1Unitat d'Avaluació, Suport i Prevenció, Hospital Clínic, Universitat de Barcelona, IDIBAPS, Barcelona, Spain. atrilla@clinic.ub.es
Insights
The average cost for a heart transplant and one year of follow-up care was €59,349. Procedure costs accounted for 70% of the total, with personnel and treatment being the main drivers. This heart transplant cost is comparable to other EU countries.
Area of Science:
- Cardiovascular Surgery
- Health Economics
- Transplantation Medicine
Context:
- Heart transplantation is a resource-intensive procedure with limited economic analyses available.
- Understanding the cost of heart transplantation is crucial for healthcare resource allocation and policy-making.
- This study addresses the economic aspects of heart transplantation within a single institution.
Purpose:
- To analyze the total costs associated with heart transplantation, including the initial procedure and one-year follow-up.
- To identify the primary cost drivers of the heart transplant procedure.
- To compare the economic outcomes with international benchmarks.
Summary:
- A total of 21 heart transplant procedures were analyzed from 1999-2000.
- The mean total cost per patient (procedure + 1-year follow-up) was €59,349.
- Personnel costs (59%) and treatment costs (20%) were the main cost drivers for the transplant procedure.
Impact:
- Provides essential economic data for heart transplant programs.
- Findings suggest that heart transplant costs in Spain are aligned with other European countries.
- Highlights the need for continued economic evaluation in advanced medical procedures.
Background And Objective:
Heart transplant requires a heavy use of high cost resources. Economic data related to this procedure had not been specifically addressed and there are very few publications which analyze this topic. The aim of this study was to analyze the costs related to heart transplant in a series of patients from a single institution.
Patients And Method:
Data from all patients included in the Hospital Clínic heart transplant programme in which a cardiac transplant was effectively performed between 1999 and 2000 were analyzed, including one year of follow-up. Patients who died within this first year were also included. Organ procurement costs were excluded. Cost analysis was performed by micro-costing techniques.
Results:
A total of 21 patients undergoing a heart transplant were included. One year survival rate was 76%. Mean (standard deviation) of total cost (procedure costs + one year follow-up cost) was 59,349 (18,881) euros (range: 29,380-113,470 euros). Procedure mean cost was 41,724 (17,584) euros (70% of total costs) and one year follow up mean cost was 17,625 (10,096) euros (30% of total costs) per patient. When the initial episode (heart transplant procedure) was analyzed, main cost drivers were personnel costs euros 59% of all costs; mean: 24,795 (7,633) euros and treatment costs -20% of all costs; mean: 8,386 (7,250) euros.
Conclusions:
Costs of heart transplant in Barcelona (Spain) are similar to those published for other European Union countries, and well below the costs related to the procedure in the United States.
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