Estimación del coste hospitalario del cáncer colorrectal en Cataluña / Estimation of hospital costs of colorectal cancer in Catalonia (Spain)

Objetivo: Estimar el coste hospitalario del tratamiento del cáncer colorrectal (CCR) según estadio, tipo de coste y fase de evolución de la enfermedad en un hospital público. Métodos: Se realizó un estudio retrospectivo de costes de la atención hospitalaria del CCR de una cohorte de 699 pacientes con diagnóstico y tratamiento de CCR entre los años 2000 y 2006 en el Hospital del Mar, con seguimiento de hasta 5 años desde el diagnóstico de la enfermedad, a partir de bases de datos clínico-administrativas. Se analizó el coste medio por estadio, tipo de coste y fase de evolución de la enfermedad. Resultados: El coste medio por paciente en casos con diagnóstico in situ fue de 6573 Euros. Este coste aumentó en estadios más avanzados y llegó a los 36.894 Euros en el estadio III. Los principales componentes del coste fueron la cirugía-hospitalización (59,2%) y la quimioterapia (19,4%). En estadios más avanzados, el peso de la cirugía-hospitalización disminuyó, mientras que el de la quimioterapia aumentó. Conclusión: Este estudio proporciona el coste hospitalario del tratamiento del CCR calculado a partir de la práctica clínica habitual. La cirugía y el tratamiento quimioterápico son los principales componentes del coste. Los resultados obtenidos aportarán la información necesaria para los análisis de coste-efectividad de distintas iniciativas preventivas e innovaciones terapéuticas en nuestro entorno (AU)

Objective: To assess the hospital cost associated with colorectal cancer (CRC) treatment by stage at diagnosis, type of cost and disease phase in a public hospital. Methods: A retrospective analysis was conducted of the hospital costs associated with a cohort of 699 patients diagnosed with CRC and treated for this disease between 2000 and 2006 in a teaching hospital and who had a 5-year follow-up from the time of diagnosis. Data were collected from clinical-administrative databases. Mean costs per patient were analysed by stage at diagnosis, cost type and disease phase. Results: The mean cost per patient ranged from 6,573 Euros for patients with a diagnosis of CRC in situto 36,894 Euros in those diagnosed in stage III. The main cost components were surgery-inpatient care (59.2%) and chemotherapy (19.4%). Advanced disease stages were associated with a decrease in the relative weight of surgical and inpatient care costs and an increase in chemotherapy costs. Conclusions: This study provides the costs of CRC treatment based on clinical practice, with chemotherapy and surgery accounting for the major cost components. This cost analysis is a baseline study that will provide a useful source of information for future studies on cost-effectiveness and on the budget impact of different therapeutic innovations in Spain (AU)

Effective treatment of a highly active antiretroviral regimen through jejunostomy.

A 49-year-old woman voluntarily not receiving HIV treatment was admitted to the emergency department showing sepsis and peritonism. She required several surgical procedures for intestinal perforations. Finally, a proximal-terminal jejunostomy and a distal mucous jejunostomy were performed. At this time, her HIV viral load was 531 388 copies/ml and CD4 count was 193 cells/µl. Then, HAART was restarted with lopinavir/ritonavir 400/100 mg plus lamivudine 150 mg/12 hours, and etravirine 400 mg/24 hours. Each drug was dissolved in 20 ml of water and administered through the distal jejunostomy. In 2 months, her HIV viral load decreased in 3·9 log and CD4 count increased in 70 cells/µl. On day 250, an intestinal tract reconstruction was performed and short after highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) was restarted orally. Lopinavir/ritonavir, etravirine, and lamivudine administered through a jejunostomy resulted effective in decreasing HIV viral load and increasing CD4 lymphocyte count in a HIV patient who could not receive treatment orally.

Impact of rifampicin addition to clarithromycin in Legionella pneumophila pneumonia.

We evaluated the effectiveness and safety of rifampicin addition to clarithromycin in the treatment of Legionnaires' disease. An observational cohort study was conducted on patients assigned to a Legionnaires' disease outbreak. Of 32 patients with confirmed Legionella pneumonia, 11 received clarithromycin monotherapy and 21 received combination therapy of clarithromycin with rifampicin. Both groups had similar baseline characteristics and all patients were cured. Patients who received rifampicin had a 50% longer length of stay (P=0.035) and a trend towards higher bilirubin levels (P=0.053). Length of stay was directly correlated with the duration of rifampicin treatment (P=0.001). Combination therapy of clarithromycin and rifampicin had no additional benefit compared with clarithromycin monotherapy and could prolong the length of stay owing to possible negative drug interactions that could also affect other antibiotics.