Direct costs of hospital care according to coinfection in adult COVID-19 patients

Objective: To estimate the direct costs of hospital care according to coinfection in adult COVID-19 patients. Materials and methods: A retrospective follow-up study of adult patients hospitalized for COVID-19 between March and August 2020 at the San Vicente Foundation Hospitals (Medellín and Rionegro, Colombia). Patients whose diagnosis of SARS-Cov2 pneumonia was confirmed by RT-PCR test were included. Death from any cause and length of stay were considered outcome variables. Costs were estimated in 20 20 US dollars. Results: 365 patients with an average age of 60 years (IQR: 46-71), 40% female, were analyzed. 60.5% required an Intensive Care Unit (ICU). All-cause mortality was 2.87 per 100 patient-days. Patients admitted to the ICU who developed coinfection had an average length of stay of 27.8 days (SD:17.1) and an average cost of $23,935.7 (SD: $16,808.2); patients admitted to the ICU who did not develop a coinfection had an average length of stay of 14.7 days (SD:8.6) and an average cost of $9,968.5 (SD: $8,054.0). Conclusion: A high percentage of patients required intensive care, and there was a high mortality due to COVID-19. In addition, a higher cost of care was observed for those patients who developed coinfection and were admitted to ICU.