Abstract
Do rhinovirus lower respiratory tract infections (RV) LRTIs in prematurely born infants increase health related cost of care during infancy? Patients and methods: 153 infants born <36 weeks of gestation were prospectively followed to one year. Cost of care was calculated from the NHS reference costing scheme and health care utilisation determined by examining hospital/general practitioner records.
Twenty infants developed RV LRTIs (RV group), 17 RSV LRTIs (RSV group), 12 both RV and RSV LRTIs (RV/RSV group), 74 had no LRTI (no LRTI group). Compared to the no LRTI group, the RV/RSV LRTI group had the greatest increase in adjusted mean cost (difference=£5769), followed by the RV LRTI group (difference=£278), then the RSV LRTI group (difference=£172), p=0.045. The RV group had more out-patient (p<0.05) and respiratory related general practitioner (p<0.05) attendances and more wheezed at follow up (p<0.001) than the no LRTI group and more respiratory related out-patient attendances than the RSV LRTI group (p<0.05). Answer to the question: RV LRTIs were associated with increased health related cost of care during infancy; our results suggest that the RV compared to the RSV group suffered greater chronic respiratory morbidity.
- Health care utilisation
- health related cost of care
- lower respiratory tract infection
- respiratory syncytial virus
- rhinovirus
- ERS