Table 6.
Three-year cumulative SI joint disruption and/or degenerative sacroiliitis-attributablea direct medical costs per patient treated with nonoperative care (2011 USD)b
| Parameter | Overall (N=78,512)c |
Patients with lumbar spinal fusion (N=434) |
Patients without lumbar spinal fusion (N=78,078)c |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total costsd | |||
| Mean (SD) | 16,196 (28,592) | 91,720 (75,502) | 15,776 (27,542) |
| Median | 7,109 | 79,658 | 7,037 |
| Hospitalization costs | |||
| Mean (SD) | 36,212 (46,390) | 67,807 (63,901) | 34,459 (44,576) |
| Median | 23,178 | 52,481 | 21,972 |
| % of overall total costs | 19.4 | 61.2 | 18.1 |
| Hospital outpatient costs | |||
| Mean (SD) | 4,411 (9,105) | 10,736 (17,205) | 4,350 (8,969) |
| Median | 1,531 | 5,295 | 1,511 |
| % of overall total costs | 14.0 | 10.5 | 14.1 |
| Outpatient physician office costs | |||
| Mean (SD) | 701 (975) | 1,810 (1,397) | 694 (968) |
| Median | 391 | 1,462 | 388 |
| % of overall total costs | 3.9 | 2.0 | 4.0 |
| Emergency room costs | |||
| Mean (SD) | 964 (2,410) | 2,645 (7,203) | 948 (2,308) |
| Median | 513 | 796 | 512 |
| % of overall total costs | 1.0 | 0.8 | 1.0 |
| Outpatient pain medication costs | |||
| Mean (SD) | 1,900 (6,813) | 5,394 (15,049) | 1,877 (6,719) |
| Median | 249 | 2,066 | 245 |
| % of overall total costs | 9.6 | 5.7 | 9.7 |
Notes:
Degenerative sacroiliitis/SI joint disruption attributable costs defined as claims with an ICD-9-CM diagnosis code of 71x.xx, 72x.xx, 73x.xx or 84x.xx in any diagnosis field;
mean costs are calculated only among patients with non-zero costs. Dollar amounts from 2009 and 2010 were converted to 2011 USD using the medical care component of the Consumer Price Index. Costs reported as $0 are due to rounding as values <$0.50 were rounded down to $0;
twenty-one patients were excluded from the overall and without lumbar spinal fusion groups due to zero costs;
total costs are defined as the sum of hospitalization, hospital outpatient, physician office, emergency room, outpatient pain medication, and other costs (eg, skilled nursing facility, hospice, home health, durable medical equipment, ambulatory surgery center, ambulance, independent lab, nursing home, or outpatient non-pain medication costs).
Abbreviations: SD, standard deviation; SI, sacroiliac; USD, United States dollars.