Neurogenic Lower Urinary Tract Dysfunction in Asymptomatic Patients with Multiple Sclerosis.

Neurogenic lower urinary tract dysfunction (NLUTD) in asymptomatic patients with MS has been described in preliminary studies, but specific investigations of this topic are rare. Many authors advise early diagnosis and treatment of NLUTD in patients with MS. In contrast, clinical practice and different guidelines recommend neuro-urological diagnostics only in the presence of symptoms. Our aim was to investigate the characteristics of NLUTD and the correlations of clinical parameters with NLUTD in asymptomatic patients with MS. We evaluated bladder diaries, urodynamic findings, and therapy proposals. Correlations of the voided volume, voiding frequency, urinary tract infections, and uroflowmetry including post-void residual with the urodynamic findings were determined. In our study, 26% of the patients were asymptomatic. Of these, 73.7% had urodynamic findings indicative of NLUTD, 21.1% had detrusor overactivity, 13.2% had detrusor underactivity, 13.2% detrusor overactivity and detrusor sphincter dyssynergia, and 57.9% had radiologically abnormal findings of the bladder. No patients presented low bladder compliance or renal reflux. Clinical parameters from the bladder diary and urinary tract infections were found to be correlated with NLUTD, and the absence of symptoms did not exclude NLUTD in patients with MS. We observed that urinary tract damage is already present in a relevant proportion. Based on our results, we recommend that patients with MS be screened for NLUTD regardless of the subjective presence of urinary symptoms or the disease stage.

[Inderdisciplinary care of patients with short-bowel-syndrome in Germany: A comparative Cost-of-Illness analysis of in- and outpatient care]. / Interdisziplinäre Betreuung von Patienten mit Kurzdarmsyndrom in Deutschland: Eine Cost-of-Illness-Analyse der stationären und ambulanten Behandlung im Vergleich zum erzielten DRG-Erlös.

INTRODUCTION: Short-bowel-syndrome (SBS) is an often chronic disease with high morbidity. The aim of this study was to evaluate the complexity of SBS treatment and the economic burden on a treating hospital. METHODS: Anonymized data of eleven consecutive SBS patients from the University Hospital of Bonn were included. Parameters of medical resources were considered for year of diagnosis (YOD) and a follow-up (FU) period of three years. Subsequently, costs were evaluated according to the corresponding catalogues. RESULTS: Median inpatient days were 96 days in YOD and decreased to three days in the third year of FU. Median cost of inpatient treatment decreased from approximately 84 500 € auf 3200 €. While major visceral surgery was usually required in the YOD, catheter-associated interventions dominated during further FU. Actual reimbursement according to the G-DRG covered approximately 50 % of inpatient treatment cost, for outpatient care only est. 16.5 % of costs were covered. Annual costs for medication, parenteral nutrition and GLP-2-analogon treatment added up to 6752 €, 48 485 € and 138 442 €, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The interdisciplinary medical care of SBS-patients is resource-intensive and expensive. The required treatment shifts from the in- to the outpatient sector. Both settings are at present not adequately reimbursed. Hence, this imbalance may endanger adequate care for SBS-patients in the future in times of economic rationale. In concordance with other rare disease management programs, additional measures are needed to provide and improve interdisciplinary treatment of SBS.