Cost and consultation patterns of abdominal pain in Uruguayan children.
J Pediatr Gastroenterol Nutr
; 46(2): 159-63, 2008 Feb.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-18223374
BACKGROUND: Children with abdominal pain (AP) have worse quality of life and poorer social functioning and school attendance than their healthy peers. This is the first investigation of consultation patterns and costs of AP in South American children. PATIENTS AND METHODS: All data were collected from Unidad Coronaria Movil in Montevideo, Uruguay. Diagnoses of all house calls during a 4-year period (January 2002 through December 2005) were analyzed. Variances in consultation patterns based on sex and age were investigated. Supply and personnel costs were analyzed and prorated to obtain an accurate estimate of the cost per house call and outpatient visit. RESULTS: A total of 125,945 in-home visits and 1588 outpatient consultations were analyzed. Consultation rates for AP peaked among patients 7 to 9 years of age. Female subjects 9 to 14 years of age consulted significantly more frequently for AP than male subjects in the same age group. The average AP consultation accounted for approximately 3.8% of the per capita health care spending in Uruguay in 2005. CONCLUSIONS: AP is a global health problem that is present across ethnicities, nationalities, and geographic locations and is associated with significant health care expenditure.
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Atenção Primária à Saúde
/
Encaminhamento e Consulta
/
Dor Abdominal
/
Custos de Cuidados de Saúde
Tipo de estudo:
Health_economic_evaluation
Aspecto:
Patient_preference
Limite:
Adolescent
/
Child
/
Female
/
Humans
/
Male
País/Região como assunto:
America do sul
/
Uruguay
Idioma:
En
Revista:
J Pediatr Gastroenterol Nutr
Ano de publicação:
2008
Tipo de documento:
Article
País de afiliação:
Estados Unidos
País de publicação:
Estados Unidos