The objective of this study was to analyze acute care utilization of sickle cell disease (SCD) and sickle cell trait (SCT) in children and identify trends in emergency department (ED) visits and inpatient admissions over a 10-year period. This is a retrospective population-based study of SCD- and SCT-related ED visits and admissions from 2006 to 2015. Data were acquired from the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP), National Inpatient Sample (NIS), and National Emergency Department Sample (NEDS) database.
Cost-to-charge and estimated professional fee ratios were applied to approximate costs. Over 80% of medical expenditure on HbSS is through ED-based admissions. There is a statistically significant increase from 2006 to 2015 in the direct hospital admissions associated with patients less than 18 years of age who have been diagnosed with SCT.
Conclusion:
Among patients less than 18 years of age with HbSS, inpatient admissions through the emergency department accounted for the largest medical expenditure of the SCD subtypes.
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