General Surgery, King's Mill Hospital, Mansfield, UK.
Eur J Vasc Endovasc Surg. 2010 Jan;39(1):104-11. doi: 10.1016/j.ejvs.2009.09.012. Epub 2009 Oct 29.
To compare the costs involved (from procedure to recovery) following radiofrequency ablation and conventional surgery for lower limb varicose veins in a selected population.
Prospective randomised controlled trial.
Patients with symptomatic great saphenous varicose veins suitable for radiofrequency ablation were randomised to either RF ablation or surgery (sapheno-femoral ligation and stripping). The hospital, general practice and patient costs incurred until full recovery and the indirect cost to society, due to sickness leave after surgery, were calculated to indicate mean cost per patient under each category.
Ninety three patients were randomised. Eighty eight patients (47 - RF ablation, 41 - surgery) underwent the allocated intervention. Ablation took longer to perform than surgery (mean 76.8 vs 47.0 min, p<.001). Ablation was more expensive (mean hospital cost per patient 1275.90 pounds vs 559.13 pounds) but enabled patients to return to work 1 week earlier than after surgery (mean 12.2 vs 19.8 days, p=0.006). Based on the Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (Office of National Statistics, UK) for full time employees, the cost per working hour gained after ablation was 6.94 pounds (95% CI 6.26, 7.62).
The increased cost of radiofrequency ablation is partly offset by a quicker return to work in the employed group (ISRCTN29015169http://www.controlled-trials.com).
在特定人群中比较射频消融与传统手术治疗下肢静脉曲张的相关费用（从手术到康复）。
前瞻性随机对照试验。
对适合射频消融的大隐静脉曲张患者进行随机分组，分别接受射频消融或手术治疗（大隐静脉高位结扎和剥脱术）。分别计算患者在完全康复之前的医院、全科医生和患者费用，以及因术后病假而给社会带来的间接成本，以表明每类患者的平均费用。
93 例患者被随机分组。88 例患者（47 例 - 射频消融，41 例 - 手术）接受了分配的干预措施。消融手术的操作时间长于手术（平均 76.8 分钟 vs 47.0 分钟，p<.001）。消融术的费用更高（每位患者的平均医院费用为 1275.90 英镑 vs 559.13 英镑），但比手术后能更早地恢复工作（平均 12.2 天 vs 19.8 天，p=0.006）。根据英国国家统计局（Office of National Statistics，英国）的年度工时和收入调查（Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings），对全职员工而言，消融术后每小时工作的收益成本为 6.94 英镑（95%CI 6.26，7.62）。
射频消融术的成本增加部分被受雇患者更快恢复工作所抵消（ISRCTN29015169http://www.controlled-trials.com）。
