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Healthcare resource utilization and cost among males with lower urinary tract symptoms with a predominant storage component in Spain: The epidemiological, cross‐sectional MERCURY study
Author(s) -
ErrandoSmet Carlos,
MüllerArteaga Carlos,
Hernández Marta,
Lenero Enrique,
Roset Montse
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
neurourology and urodynamics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.918
H-Index - 90
eISSN - 1520-6777
pISSN - 0733-2467
DOI - 10.1002/nau.23293
Subject(s) - medicine , lower urinary tract symptoms , cross sectional study , health care , epidemiology , emergency medicine , pathology , prostate , cancer , economics , economic growth
Aims To assess the relationship between storage‐predominant LUTS and healthcare resource consumption and cost among males in Spain. Methods In this non‐interventional, cross‐sectional study, urologists enrolled males with storage‐predominant LUTS and recorded the consumption of healthcare resources (medical visits, diagnostic tests/monitoring, treatment, and hospitalizations) within the previous 6 months. The cost of healthcare resources was calculated from unit costs extracted from a Spanish eHealth database. Severity of LUTS was assessed by the Bladder Self‐Assessment Questionnaire (BSAQ) and patients were stratified by symptom score (<6 or ≥6) to assess the relationship between LUTS severity and healthcare resource consumption and cost. Results Among 610 enrolled patients (BSAQ symptom score <6, n = 191; BSAQ symptom score ≥6, n = 419), the majority (87.7%) consumed healthcare resources during the previous 6 months in the form of medical visits (86.2%), diagnostic tests/monitoring (83.4%), and treatment (85.9%). Patients with BSAQ symptom scores ≥6 used more healthcare resources compared with patients with BSAQ symptom scores <6. The most common treatments for LUTS were α‐blockers used as monotherapy ( n = 229 [37.5%]) or in combination with antimuscarinics ( n = 227 [37.2%]). The estimated median annual cost was €1070 per patient, consisting of diagnostic tests/monitoring (54.6%), medical visits (20.5%), and treatment (29.6%), and was higher in patients with BSAQ symptom score ≥6 (€1127) than in patients with BSAQ symptom score <6 (€920; P < 0.001). Conclusions More severe LUTS are associated with higher healthcare consumption and cost. These findings highlight the importance of symptom management in LUTS patients to help minimize healthcare consumption and cost.