Hospital incidence and costs of congenital hydrocephalus in Spain: a multicenter retrospective study.

METHODS

Records of hospital admissions of patients with congenital hydrocephalus between 2010 and 2019 were obtained from a Spanish hospital discharge database and analyzed in a retrospective multicenter study.

RESULTS

A third of the patients included in the study were perinatal patients, however, the hospitalization rate in this group was higher to that in patients over 1 year of age. Perinatal patients required more ICU admissions and longer hospital stays, with more frequent surgical interventions and mechanical ventilation. The mean medical cost associated to congenital hydrocephalus was €9610 per admission, with significantly higher costs found in perinatal patients.

CONCLUSIONS

This study provides novel data on the hospital costs of congenital hydrocephalus in Spain. The hospital medical costs of this disorder have decreased over the past decade for perinatal patients but not in those aged 1 year and older, which should be considered in upcoming healthcare plans and resource allocation decisions.