The economic burden of rotavirus hospitalization among children < 5 years of age in selected hospitals in Bangladesh

Ahmed, S. et al. (2021) The economic burden of rotavirus hospitalization among children < 5 years of age in selected hospitals in Bangladesh. Vaccine, 39(48), pp. 7082-7090. (doi: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2021.10.003) (PMID:34756769)

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Abstract

Background: Rotavirus is a common cause of severe acute gastroenteritis among young children. Estimation of the economic burden would provide informed decision about investment on prevention strategies (e.g., vaccine and/or behavior change), which has been a potential policy discussion in Bangladesh for several years. Methods: We estimated the societal costs of children <5 years for hospitalization from rotavirus gastroenteritis (RVGE) and incidences of catastrophic health expenditure. A total of 360 children with stool specimens positive for rotavirus were included in this study from 6 tertiary hospitals (3 public and 3 private). We interviewed the caregiver of the patient and hospital staff to collect cost from patient and health facility perspectives. We estimated the economic cost considering 2015 as the reference year. Results: The total societal per-patient costs to treat RVGE in the public hospital were 126 USD (95% CI: 116–136) and total household costs were 161 USD (95% CI: 145–177) in private facilities. Direct costs constituted 38.1% of total household costs. The out-of-pocket payments for RVGE hospitalization was 23% of monthly income and 76% of households faced catastrophic healthcare expenditures due to this expense. The estimated total annual household treatment cost for the country was 10 million USD. Conclusions: A substantial economic burden of RVGE in Bangladesh was observed in this study. Any prevention of RVGE through cost-effective vaccination or/and behavioural change would contribute to substantial economic benefits to Bangladesh.

Item Type:Articles
Status:Published
Refereed:Yes
Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID:Ahmed, Dr Sayem
Authors: Ahmed, S., Dorin, F., Satter, S. M., Sarker, A. R., Sultana, M., Gastanaduy, P. A., Parashar, U., Tate, J. E., Heffelfinger, J. D., Gurley, E. S., and Khan, J. A. M.
College/School:College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Health & Wellbeing > Health Economics and Health Technology Assessment
Journal Name:Vaccine
Publisher:Elsevier
ISSN:0264-410X
ISSN (Online):1873-2518
Published Online:30 October 2021

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