Healthcare spending and utilization for pediatric Irritable Bowel Syndrome in a commercially insured population
Beate Beinvogl1, Nathan Palmer2, Isaac Kohane2
1Center for Motility and Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
Insights
Pediatric Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) significantly increases healthcare costs and utilization in children. Children with IBS incur over $6,000 more annually in medical expenses and use more healthcare services.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Gastroenterology
- Health Economics
- Clinical Epidemiology
Background:
- Pediatric Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) is a prevalent condition causing significant gastrointestinal distress in children.
- Comprehensive data on the economic impact and healthcare resource utilization for pediatric IBS is limited.
- Understanding these factors is crucial for effective healthcare management and resource allocation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To quantify the annual all-cause healthcare spending associated with pediatric IBS.
- To analyze the patterns of healthcare utilization among children diagnosed with IBS.
- To identify differences in comorbidities between pediatric IBS patients and a control group.
Main Methods:
- A cross-sectional cohort study was conducted using a national claims database of commercially insured individuals aged 8-18 years.
- A cohort of 1215 pediatric IBS patients was compared to 931,377 age- and gender-matched controls.
- Linear and binomial regression models were employed to assess healthcare spending and comorbidity prevalence.
Main Results:
- Pediatric IBS patients exhibited higher prevalence of mental health and chronic pain comorbidities.
- The mean annual all-cause incremental healthcare spending for pediatric IBS was $6,364.60 per patient, adjusted for age and gender.
- IBS patients demonstrated increased utilization across inpatient, outpatient, emergency room visits, and various health services including mental health and physical therapy.
Conclusions:
- Pediatric IBS is associated with substantial increases in annual healthcare spending.
- Children with IBS utilize a broader range of healthcare services compared to their peers without the condition.
- These findings underscore the significant economic burden and healthcare resource demands of pediatric IBS.
Background:
Pediatric Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) is common and can be associated with disabling gastrointestinal symptoms. Comprehensive data regarding utilization and cost of pediatric IBS are lacking. Our aim was to determine the annual all-cause spending and healthcare utilization in pediatric IBS.
Methods:
Cross-sectional cohort study using a national claims database of commercially insured individuals. 932,592 members, age 8-18 years, were included. Members were selected based on PheWas codes and continuous enrollment in 2014. Linear and binomial regression models were used to calculate healthcare spending and compare comorbidities between IBS subjects and controls.
Key Results:
1215 members with claims for IBS (68.4% female) and 931,377 controls (55.7% female) were included. Mean age was 15.03 ± 2.83 (median 16) years in the IBS group and 13.14 ± 3.12 (median 13) years in controls. Mental health and chronic pain comorbidities were more prevalent in the IBS cohort. Healthcare spending: The mean annual all-cause incremental spending of members with IBS was $6,364.60 compared to controls when adjusting for age and gender. Healthcare utilization: Members with IBS had increased healthcare utilization including higher rates of inpatient, outpatient, and emergency room visits, and higher rates of health service utilization including medical care, radiology/laboratory services, surgery, anesthesia, mental health, and physical therapy. General pediatrics was more frequently consulted by controls. All subspecialty consultations, with the exception of dental medicine and endocrinology, were sought more frequently by IBS patients.
Conclusion:
Patients with IBS incur significant annual spending through increased healthcare utilization.
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