Purpose: This study was designed to test the hypothesis that patients undergoing definitive surgery for chronic ulcerative colitis have reduced direct medical costs after, as compared with before, total proctocolectomy.
Methods: A population-based cohort of patients who underwent proctocolectomy for ulcerative colitis from 1988 to 2007 was identified using the Rochester Epidemiology Project. Total direct healthcare costs were estimated from an administrative database. The primary outcome was the observed cost difference between the two-year period before surgery and the two-year period after a surgery/recovery period (surgery + 180 days). Statistical significance was assessed using paired t-tests and bootstrapping methods. Demographic data were presented as median (interquartile range) or frequency (proportion). Mean costs are reported in 2007 constant dollars.
Results: Sixty patients were Olmsted County, Minnesota, residents at the time of surgery and for the entire period of observation. Overall 40 patients (66%) were men, median age was 42 (range, 31-52) years, and duration of median colitis was four (range, 1-11) years. Operations included ileal pouch-anal anastomosis (n = 45, mean cost of surgery/recovery period = $50,530) and total proctocolectomy with Brooke ileostomy (n = 15, mean cost of surgery/recovery period = $39,309). In the pouch subgroup, direct medical costs on average were reduced by $9,296 (P < 0.001, bootstrapped 95% confidence interval: $324-$15,628) during the two years after recovery. In the Brooke ileostomy subgroup, direct medical costs on average were reduced by $12,529 (P < 0.001, bootstrapped 95% confidence interval: $6,467-$18,688) in the two years after recovery.
Conclusion: Surgery for chronic ulcerative colitis resulted in reduced direct costs in the two years after surgical recovery. These observations suggest that surgical intervention for ulcerative colitis is associated with long-term economic benefit.