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. 2022 Jul 19:10:917119.
doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2022.917119. eCollection 2022.

Spending and Hospital Stay for Melanoma in Hunan, China

Xinchen Ke  1   2   3   4 , Wenrui Lin  1   2   3   4 , Daishi Li  1   2   3   4 , Shuang Zhao  1   2   3   4 , Mingliang Chen  1   2   3   4 , Yi Xiao  1   2   3   4 , Xiang Chen  1   2   3   4 , Minxue Shen  1   2   3   5 , Juan Su  1   2   3   4
Affiliations

Spending and Hospital Stay for Melanoma in Hunan, China

Xinchen Ke et al. Front Public Health. .

Abstract

Objective: This study aimed to describe the economic burden of Chinese patients with melanoma in Hunan province of China, and to investigate the factors for hospitalization spending and length of stay (LOS) in patients undergoing melanoma surgery.

Methods: Data was extracted from the Chinese National Health Statistics Network Reporting System database in Hunan province during 2017-2019. Population and individual statistics were presented, and nonparametric tests and quantile regression were used to analyze the factors for spending and LOS.

Result: A total of 2,644 hospitalized patients with melanoma in Hunan were identified. During 2017-2019, the total hospitalization spending was $5,247,972, and out-of-pocket payment (OOP) was $1,817,869, accounting for 34.6% of the total expenditure. The median spending was $1,123 [interquartile range (IQR): $555-2,411] per capita, and the median LOS was 10 days (IQR: 5-18). A total of 1,104 patients who underwent surgery were further analyzed. The non-parametric tests and quantile regression showed that women were associated with less spending and LOS than men. In general, patients aged 46-65 and those with lesions on the limbs had higher hospitalization costs and LOS than other subgroups.

Conclusion: Melanoma causes heavy economic burdens on patients in Hunan, such that the median spending is close to 60% of the averagely annual disposable income. Middle-aged men patients with melanoma on the limbs present the highest financial burden of melanoma.

Keywords: Chinese hospitalization spending; economic burden; length of stay; melanoma; surgery.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest. The handling editor RH declared a shared affiliation with the authors at the time of review.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Visualization of total costs for beneficiaries with different characteristics (age, payer, and subsite).
Figure 2
Figure 2
Pyramid diagram to describe the distribution of costs by sex and age group. (A) Cost at population level; (B) Cost at individual level.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Estimated parameters for hospitalization costs in patients with melanoma undergoing surgery by quantile regression versus linear regression. Black lines signify the point estimates by quantile regression at 0.1, 0.25, 0.5, 0.75, and 0.9 quantiles (gray bands signify 95% confidence intervals); and red lines signify the point estimates by linear regression (red dash lines signify 95% confidence intervals).
Figure 4
Figure 4
Estimated parameters for length of hospital stay in patients with melanoma undergoing surgery by quantile regression versus linear regression. Black lines signify the point estimates by quantile regression at 0.1, 0.25, 0.5, 0.75, and 0.9 quantiles (gray bands signify 95% confidence intervals); and red lines signify the point estimates by linear regression (red dash lines signify 95% confidence intervals).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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