Inpatient Cost Burdens of Treating Chronic Hepatitis B in US Hospitals: A Weighted Analysis of a National Database.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: This study evaluates the cost burdens of inpatient care for chronic hepatitis B (CHB). We aimed to stratify the patients based on the presence of cirrhosis and conduct subgroup analyses on patient demographics and medical characteristics. METHODS: The 2016-2019 National Inpatient Sample was used to select individuals diagnosed with CHB. The weighted charge estimates were derived and converted to admission costs, adjusting for inflation to the year 2016, and presented in United States Dollars. These adjusted values were stratified using select patient variables. To assess the goodness-of-fit for each trend, we graphed the data across the respective years, expressed in a chronological sequence with format (R2, p-value). Analysis of CHB patients was carried out in three groups: the composite CHB population, the subset of patients with cirrhosis, and the subset of patients without cirrhosis. RESULTS: From 2016 to 2019, the total costs of hospitalizations in CHB patients were $603.82, $737.92, $758.29, and $809.01 million dollars from 2016 to 2019, respectively. We did not observe significant cost trends in the composite CHB population or in the cirrhosis and non-cirrhosis cohorts. However, we did find rising costs associated with age older than 65 (0.97, 0.02), white race (0.98, 0.01), Hispanic ethnicity (1.00, 0.001), and Medicare coverage (0.95, 0.02), the significance of which persisted regardless of the presence of cirrhosis. Additionally, inpatients without cirrhosis who had comorbid metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) were also observed to have rising costs (0.96, 0.02). CONCLUSIONS: We did not find a significant increase in overall costs with CHB inpatients, regardless of the presence of cirrhosis. However, certain groups are more susceptible to escalating costs. Therefore, increased screening and nuanced vaccination planning must be optimized in order to prevent and mitigate these growing cost burdens on vulnerable populations.

The cost implications of Wilson disease among hospitalized patients: analysis of USA hospitals.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: In this study, we used a national cohort of patients with Wilson's disease (WD) to investigate the admissions, mortality rates, and costs over the captured period to assess specific subpopulations at higher burden. METHODS: Patients with WD were selected using 2016-2019 National Inpatient Sample (NIS). The weighted estimates and patient data were stratified using demographics and medical characteristics. Regression curves were graphed to derive goodness-of-fit for each trend from which R2 and P values were calculated. RESULTS: Annual total admissions per 100 000 hospitalizations due to WD were 1075, 1180, 1140, and 1330 ( R2  = 0.75; P  = 0.13) from 2016 to 2019. Within the demographics, there was an increase in admissions among patients greater than 65 years of age ( R2  = 0.90; P  = 0.05) and White patients ( R2  = 0.97; P  = 0.02). Assessing WD-related mortality rates, there was an increase in the mortality rate among those in the first quartile of income ( R2  = 1.00; P  < 0.001). The total cost for WD-related hospitalizations was $20.90, $27.23, $24.20, and $27.25 million US dollars for the years 2016, 2017, 2018, and 2019, respectively ( R2  = 0.47; P  = 0.32). There was an increasing total cost trend for Asian or Pacific Islander patients ( R2  = 0.90; P  = 0.05). Interestingly, patients with cirrhosis demonstrated a decreased trend in the total costs ( R2  = 0.97; P  = 0.02). CONCLUSION: Our study demonstrated that certain ethnicity groups, income classes and comorbidities had increased admissions or costs among patients admitted with WD.

The role of donor sex on the post-liver transplant outcomes in patients with primary sclerosing cholangitis.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) can result in hepatic decompensation and require liver transplantation (LT). This study investigates the effect of the sex of the donor and recipient as a prognostic risk factor for adverse outcomes after LT in patients with PSC. METHODS: UNOS registry was used to select LT patients with PSC from 1987 to 2019. The study cohort was stratified based on the sex of the recipient and further subdivided based on the sex of the donor. The primary endpoints of this study were all-cause mortality and graft failure, which were evaluated using a sequential Cox regression analysis. RESULTS: This study included 2829 patients; 906 female recipients were transplanted from 441 male donors and 465 female donors. 1923 male recipients were transplanted from 1194 male donors and 729 female donors. Within the mismatch analyses, the male-to-male recipients also had a significantly reduced hazard ratio of graft failure compared to female-to-male transplants [aHR 0.51, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.33-0.79, P  = 0.003]. No difference in graft failure was observed in the mismatched female recipient subgroup. The mismatched male recipient group also showed a decreased hazard ratio of mortality from graft rejection and respiratory causes. No differences in specific mortality causes were identified in the mismatched female recipient group. CONCLUSION: This study demonstrated an increase in the risk of graft failure and mortality secondary to graft failure in male recipients of female donor livers. No differences in mortality or graft failure were identified in female recipients of male livers.

A Crohn's Disease Patient Found to Have Entamoeba histolytica Infection Causing Pyogenic Liver Abscess.

Entamoeba histolytica is a parasite that typically causes amoebic dysentery but can result in complications such as pyogenic liver abscess. Patients with inflammatory bowel disease often take immunosuppressive therapies that make them more susceptible to such infections. Notably, parasitic infections in this context are rare in nonendemic areas. We describe a 57-year-old man who recently started infliximab therapy for Crohn's disease and presented with fever and right upper quadrant pain. While hospitalized, this patient was diagnosed with Entamoeba histolytica liver abscess. This case demonstrates that parasitic infections should be considered early in immunocompromised patients with inflammatory bowel disease.