Economic Burden of Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infection in Colombia: A Nationwide Cost-of-Illness Study

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is one of the leading causes of acute respiratory infections and severe cases can lead to hospitalization or death. The epidemiology and health resource utilization of RSV infection in Colombia is not well understood. Given the recent availability of new RSV preventatives, this study estimated the economic burden of RSV in Colombia.

This cost-of-illness study employed a retrospective cohort design and bottom-up costing approach to estimate direct healthcare costs associated with RSV-related acute respiratory infections across pediatric and adult populations. Administrative data from sentinel surveillance centers belonging to the National Epidemiological Surveillance System of the Colombian National Institute of Health, the database for the study of the Capitation Payment Unit database, and the Integrated Social Protection Information System were utilized to estimate RSV incidence, mortality, and healthcare costs. Costs were expressed in US dollars.

A total of 264 744 RSV-related healthcare consultations were identified in 2019. The highest incidence was among infants under 1 year (61.8 per 1000), while general mortality was highest in adults 75 years and older (46.6 per 100,000), followed by infants (42.4 per 100 000). Total direct healthcare costs were estimated at $682.87million(95$ 281.39 million- $1084.35million),withthelargestsharecontributedbyindividualsaged15yearsandolder.Amonginfantsunder1year,intensivecareunit(ICU\left)patientshadthehighestaveragecost\right($ 3619), and hospitalization accounted for 49% of total spending, followed by ICU services (29%) and medications (8%).

RSV poses a significant economic burden on Colombia's healthcare system. These findings support the need for targeted prevention strategies and efficient resource allocation. Future research should incorporate indirect costs and long-term impacts.