RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Household economic burden of childhood severe pneumonia in Bangladesh: a cost-of-illness study
JF Archives of Disease in Childhood
JO Arch Dis Child
FD BMJ Publishing Group Ltd and Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health
SP 539
OP 546
DO 10.1136/archdischild-2020-320834
VO 106
IS 6
A1 Marufa Sultana
A1 Nur H Alam
A1 Nausad Ali
A1 A S G Faruque
A1 George J Fuchs
A1 Niklaus Gyr
A1 Md Jobayer Chisti
A1 Tahmeed Ahmed
A1 Lisa Gold
YR 2021
UL http://adc.bmj.com/content/106/6/539.abstract
AB Objective To estimate household cost of illness (COI) for children with severe pneumonia in Bangladesh.Design An incidence-based COI study was performed for one episode of childhood severe pneumonia from a household perspective. Face-to-face interviews collected data on socioeconomic, resource use and cost from caregivers. A micro-costing bottom-up approach was applied to calculate medical, non-medical and time costs. Multiple regression analysis was applied to explore the factors associated with COI. Sensitivity analysis explored the robustness of cost parameters.Setting Four urban and rural study sites from two districts in Bangladesh.Patients Children aged 2–59 months with severe pneumonia.Results 1472 children with severe pneumonia were enrolled between November 2015 and March 2019. The mean age of children was 12 months (SD ±10.2) and 64% were male. The mean household cost per episode was US$147 (95% CI 141.1 to 152.7). Indirect costs were the main cost drivers (65%, US$96). Household costs for the poorest income quintile were lower in absolute terms, but formed a higher proportion of monthly income. COI was significantly higher if treatment was received from urban health facilities compared with rural health facilities (difference US$84.9, 95% CI 73.3 to 96.3). Child age, household income, healthcare facility and hospital length of stay (LoS) were significant predictors of household COI. Costs were most sensitive to hospital LoS and productivity loss.Conclusions Severe pneumonia in young children is associated with high household economic burden and cost varies significantly across socioeconomic parameters. Management strategies with improved accessibility are needed particularly for the poor to make treatment affordable in order to reduce household economic burden.