Drivers of Ischemic Stroke Hospital Cost Trends Among Older Adults in the United States.

PURPOSE

The increased use of neuroimaging and innovations in ischemic stroke (IS) treatment have improved outcomes, but the impact on median hospital costs is not well understood.

METHODS

A retrospective study was conducted using Medicare 5% claims data for 75,525 consecutive index IS hospitalizations for patients aged ≥65 years from 2012 to 2019 (values in 2019 dollars). IS episode cost was calculated in each year for trend analysis and stratified by cost components, including neuroimaging (CT angiography [CTA], CT perfusion [CTP], MRI, and MR angiography [MRA]), treatment (endovascular thrombectomy [EVT] and/or intravenous thrombolysis), and patient sociodemographic factors. Logistic regression was performed to analyze the drivers of high-cost episodes and median regression to assess drivers of median costs.

RESULTS

The median IS episode cost increased by 4.9% from $9,509 in 2012 to $9,973 in 2019 (P = .0021). Treatment with EVT resulted in the greatest odds of having a high-cost (>$20,000) hospitalization (odds ratio [OR], 71.86; 95% confidence interval [CI], 54.62-94.55), as did intravenous thrombolysis treatment (OR, 3.19; 95% CI, 2.90-3.52). Controlling for other factors, neuroimaging with CTA (OR, 1.72; 95% CI, 1.58-1.87), CTP (OR, 1.32; 95% CI, 1.14-1.52), and/or MRA (OR, 1.26; 95% CI, 1.15-1.38) had greater odds of having high-cost episodes than those without CTA, CTP, and MRA. Length of stay > 4 days (OR, 4.34; 95% CI, 3.99-4.72) and in-hospital mortality (OR, 1.85; 95% CI, 1.63-2.10) were also associated with high-cost episodes.

CONCLUSIONS

From 2012 to 2019, the median IS episode cost increased by 4.9%, with EVT as the main cost driver. However, the increasing treatment cost trends have been partially offset by decreases in median length of stay and in-hospital mortality.