Pediatric Hospitalization for Varicella in an Italian Pediatric Hospital: How Much Does It Cost?

Elena Bozzola, Giulia Spina, Maria Rosaria Marchili, Carla Brusco, Stefano Guolo, Chiara Rossetti, Giuseppe Logrieco, Francesca Pignatelli, Massimiliano Raponi and Alberto Villani
Additional contact information
Elena Bozzola: Pediatric Diseases Unit, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, IRCCS, 00100 Roma, Italy
Giulia Spina: Pediatric Diseases Unit, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, IRCCS, 00100 Roma, Italy
Maria Rosaria Marchili: Pediatric Diseases Unit, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, IRCCS, 00100 Roma, Italy
Carla Brusco: Sanitary Direction, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, IRCCS, 00100 Roma, Italy
Stefano Guolo: Sanitary Direction, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, IRCCS, 00100 Roma, Italy
Chiara Rossetti: Pediatric Diseases Unit, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, IRCCS, 00100 Roma, Italy
Giuseppe Logrieco: Pediatric Diseases Unit, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, IRCCS, 00100 Roma, Italy
Francesca Pignatelli: Pediatric Diseases Unit, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, IRCCS, 00100 Roma, Italy
Massimiliano Raponi: Sanitary Direction, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, IRCCS, 00100 Roma, Italy
Alberto Villani: Pediatric Diseases Unit, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, IRCCS, 00100 Roma, Italy

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 22, 1-6

Abstract: Background: Varicella is a common pediatric infection. Even if it generally has a benign course, it may complicate and require hospitalization. The aim of our study was to estimate the acute hospitalization cost (AHC) for varicella in the acute phase in a pediatric population. Methods: We calculated the AHC of pediatric patients admitted for varicella at Bambino Gesù Children Hospital, Rome, Italy, from 1 November 2005 to 1 November 2020. Results: In the study period, 825 pediatric patients affected by varicella were hospitalized. The mean hospitalization cost was EUR 4015.35 (range from EUR 558.44 to EUR 42,608.00). Among patients, 55% were unvaccinable due to either their age or their immunosuppression status. They would benefit from herd immunity, reducing the overall AHC by EUR 182,196,506. Since the introduction of the compulsory vaccination against varicella in Italy, we observed a significant reduction in AHC cost of 60.6% in 2019 and of 93.5% in 2020. Finally, from the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, we documented a decline of 81.2% and 76.9% in varicella hospitalization, compared to 2018 and 2019, respectively. Conclusions: Varicella AHC is an important economic and health assessment point and can be useful for improving preventive strategies.

Keywords: varicella; hospitalization; cost; children (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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