[Costs of healthcare resource consumption after a myocardial infarction in France: An estimate from a medicoadministrative database (GSB)]

Abstract

Objective: To estimate the costs of healthcare resource consumption in the year preceding and the year following a myocardial infarction (MI).

Patients and methods: A historical cohort of patients experiencing an MI in France between 2007 and 2011 was extracted from the échantillon généraliste de bénéficiaires, a 1/97th sample of all beneficiaries of public health insurance in France.

Results: A total of 1920 patients experiencing an MI were identified. Two-thirds were men and the mean age was 67 years; 20.6% had diabetes, 37.6% hypercholesterolaemia and 82.4% hypertension. From a societal perspective, the annual costs of medical consumption related to hospitalisations increased from € 4548 before the MI to € 6470 in the following year. Costs of community care rose from € 2932 to € 6208. This increase concerned all components of community healthcare: costs associated with medical transportation increased fourfold, those associated with consultations and laboratory tests tripled, medication costs doubled and costs of paramedical services also increased, but to a lesser extent. It should be noted that the cost of hospitalisation for the index MI (€ 5876) is not included in the above costs.

Conclusion: From a society perspective, the cost of healthcare resource consumption increased threefold in the year following an MI.

Keywords: Cost; Coût; France; Infarctus du myocarde; Myocardial infarction.