Economic burden of infective endocarditis in Zhejiang region from 2007 to 2016.

BACKGROUND

Infective endocarditis (IE) has attracted widespread public attention. However, studies on its economic burden remain scarce.

METHODS

This retrospective study aimed to collect data on the clinical characteristics of patients with IE from electronic medical records and estimate the economic burden with disability-adjusted life years (DALYs). Additionally, the changing trend of IE from 2007 to 2016 and differences between native valve endocarditis (NVE) and prosthetic valve endocarditis (PVE) on economic burden were analyzed.

RESULTS

There were 407 patients with IE enrolled in this study. The total DALY loss was 1710.2. The average indirect economic burden ranged from $6253.27 to $14766.34 from 2007 to 2016 showing a stable trend, which was 1.67 to 2.46 times the annual per gross domestic product (GDP). Interestingly, the average indirect economic burden for females ranged from $5941.37 to $17261.07 with a significant upward trend during this period (P = 0.035).The average DALY loss and indirect economic burden were highest in patient aged ≤ 19 (4.82, $21486.12) and lowest in those aged 80-89(0.46, $342.87), decreasing significantly with age(both P<0.001). Finally, there were no significant differences in the average DALY loss and indirect economic burden between the PVE group and NVE group during this period (2.69 vs. 2.63, P = 0.740; $9224.0vs. $11789.4, P = 0.136).

CONCLUSIONS

The DALY loss and indirect economic burden associated with IE were notably high, particularly among younger patients and females. These findings highlight the need for targeted preventive care and early interventions, especially for youth and gender-specific strategies, to reduce disparities in IE burden.