Study on the trend of congenital heart disease inpatient costs and its influencing factors in economically underdeveloped areas of China, 2015–2020: a case study of Gansu Province

Abstract

BackgroundEconomic data on congenital heart disease are scarce in economically underdeveloped areas of China. Therefore, this study aimed to shed light on the level and changing trend of congenital heart disease inpatients' economic burden in underdeveloped areas.MethodThis study used a multi-stage stratified cluster sampling method to select 11,055 inpatients with congenital heart disease from 197 medical and health institutions in Gansu Province. Their medical records and expenses were obtained from the Hospital Information System. Univariate analysis was conducted using the rank sum test and Spearman rank correlation. Quantile regression and random forest were used to analyze the influencing factors.ResultsFrom 2015 to 2020, the average length of stay for congenital heart disease patients in Gansu Province was 10.09 days, with an average inpatient cost of USD 3,274.57. During this period, the average inpatient costs per time increased from USD 3,214.85 to USD 3,403.41, while the average daily inpatient costs increased from USD 330.05 to USD 376.56. The average out-of-pocket costs per time decreased from USD 2,305.96 to USD 754.77. The main factors that affected the inpatient costs included length of stay, cardiac procedure, proportion of medications, age, and hospital level.ConclusionCongenital heart disease causes a significant economic burden on both families and society. Therefore, to further reduce the patient's financial burden, the length of stay should be reasonably reduced, and the rational distribution of medical resources should be continuously promoted to ensure equitable access to healthcare services.

Association of Maternal Dietary Habits and Infant MTHFR Gene Polymorphisms with Ventricular Septal Defect in Offspring: A Case–Control Study

“…In China, ventricular septal defects (VSDs) occur as the most frequent subtype of CHD, with an estimated prevalence of 1.410 per 1000 births [3]. The reported average inpatient costs range from USD 3275 to 9409 [4,5], demonstrating that CHD (including VSDs) remains a critical public health concern. It is commonly understood that genetic and environmental factors are involved in the pathogenesis of most non-syndromic CHDs.…”