A Single-Centre Canadian Cost Analysis for the Care and Management of Injection Drug Use-Associated Infective...

Area of Science:

• Cardiology
• Health Economics
• Infectious Diseases

Background:

• Limited Canadian data exist on the economic impact of cardiac surgery for injection drug use-related infective endocarditis (IDU-IE).
• The current opioid crisis highlights the need to understand healthcare costs associated with IDU-IE.
• This study quantifies the healthcare system cost for patients with IDU-IE requiring cardiac surgery in Calgary, Alberta.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine the economic burden of cardiac surgery hospitalizations for IDU-IE in Canada.
• To quantify the healthcare system cost for patients with IDU-IE undergoing cardiac surgery.
• To provide data for optimizing care and resource utilization in this patient population.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective cohort analysis of patients diagnosed with IDU-IE who underwent cardiac surgery between 2013 and 2019.
• Utilized Alberta Health Services patient coding and financial ledger data.
• Quantified overall and categorical healthcare system costs.

Main Results:

• Eighteen patients with IDU-IE underwent cardiac surgery, primarily isolated tricuspid valve surgery.
• Average cost per patient from diagnosis to discharge was CAD$131,072 ± $17,844.
• In-hospital nursing care represented the highest cost contributor; mean ICU and hospital stays were 5.2 and 24.9 days, respectively.

Conclusions:

• Cardiac surgery for IDU-IE is more costly per patient than for the general cardiac surgery population.
• This patient group has unique care requirements necessitating optimized management.
• Improving patient outcomes and healthcare resource utilization is essential for this population.