A population-based study of the costs of care for community-acquired pneumonia

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Abstract
In a population-based study, the consumption of resources for treating adult patients with community-acquired pneumonia was determined.During a 2‐yr period, all cases with a clinical and radiological suspicion of community-acquired pneumonia that occurred in patients aged >14 yrs in a community of 74,610 inhabitants were investigated prospectively.Of 292 cases with a suspicion of community-acquired pneumonia, 224 were included (18.5% misdiagnoses). The mean number of visits per patient was 4.5 (72% in the primary care setting). Inpatient care was recommended in 59.8% of cases; after discharge, 44% of patients were managed in outpatient clinics. The mean direct cost of pneumonia treated in the hospital setting was (euros)1,553, whereas the mean cost of cases treated as outpatients was 196. A total of 15.7% of admissions were considered inappropriate and the length of stay could have been reduced by 3.5 days in the most severe cases. A reduction in inappropriate admissions and lengths of hospital stay would result in a decrease in cost of 17.4%.Community-acquired pneumonia in Maresme, Spain, occurs at a low incidence, although with a high percentage of hospitalisations (in part inappropriate), resulting in considerable costs.