Diagnosis and Treatment Approach of Children with Acute Gastroenteritis in A Tertiary Center: Medical Cost Analysis
Abstract
Introduction: Although there are well defined guidelines in the literature for diagnosis and treatment of acute gastroenteritis which is common diseases in children, most of time patients are not managed according to these guidelines and unnecessary tests and treatments are performed. The unnecessary tests and treatments costs account for a significant percentage of healthcare spending. We aimed to analyze the diagnostic and therapeutic cost of patients with acute gastroenteritis who admitted to the tertiary center in Turkey. Materials and Methods: A total of 342 patients, aged under 18 years were admitted to Gazi University Hospital and diagnosed with acute gastroenteritis were included to the study. The clinical features, diagnosis and treatment approach and medical costs of the patients were recorded and analyzed. The medical costs were calculated according to the bills which were sent to Social Security Foundation known as SGK. Results: According to the bills which were sent to SGK the mean total cost was calculated $22.99±13.40, the mean laboratory test cost was $11.14±9.72 and the mean cost of the treatment in the hospital was $2.64±6.21. 70% of testing cost and 90% of treatment cost were inappropriate according to the current guideline recommendation about diagnose and treatment of acute gastroenteritis. Conclusion: Health professionals, especially pediatricians, should aim to apply appropriate diagnostic and therapeutic approaches, taking into account current…
Read the paper
Related studies
- Patient-Centered Pharmaceutical Design to Improve Acceptability of Medicines: Similarities and Differences in Paediatric and Geriatric Populations
- Evidence-based clinical practice guidelines for irritable bowel syndrome 2020
- Phase 2b Study of Pimodivir (JNJ-63623872) as Monotherapy or in Combination With Oseltamivir for Treatment of Acute Uncomplicated Seasonal Influenza A: TOPAZ Trial
- Gastrointestinal manifestations in COVID-19
- COVID-19 and Gastrointestinal Disease: Implications for the Gastroenterologist
- Persistent gut barrier damage and commensal bacterial influx following eradication of Giardia infection in mice
Go deeper in Evidence Hub
Evidence Hub adds a study data sheet (design, sample size, evidence level, key numbers), an AI summary and a chat grounded in the paper's text.