ClinicoEconomics and outcomes research : CEOR
Economic Value and Caregiver Burden of Continuous Fascia iliaca Compartment Block in Elderly Patients with Intertrochanteric or Subtrochanteric Fracture: A Cost-Consequence Analysis Based on a Propensity Score-Matched Cohort
By Wang Z, Gao H, Xu G and 2 others.
Abstract
Background
Hip fracture imposes substantial clinical and economic burden on older adults in China. Continuous fascia iliaca compartment block (CFICB) may improve perioperative recovery in elderly patients with intertrochanteric or subtrochanteric fracture, but its economic consequences remain uncertain. We compared direct medical costs, caregiver-related indirect costs, and clinical outcomes of CFICB with routine systemic analgesia (RA; a non-block regimen, distinct from regional anaesthesia, of which CFICB is itself a technique).
Methods
We performed a cost-consequence analysis alongside a propensity score-matched retrospective cohort study at Beijing Friendship Hospital. Patients aged ≥65 years treated January 2020-December 2023 were included after 1:1 matching (CFICB n = 40; RA n = 40). Healthcare-system and societal perspectives were adopted over a pre-specified one-month postoperative horizon. Direct costs came from itemised billing; caregiver time costs were valued by the replacement-cost approach and productivity losses by the human capital approach. Mean cost differences and 95% CIs used bias-corrected and accelerated bootstrap resampling.