Evidence map›Paper›PMID 33930050›Full record

ArticlePloS one2021

Budget impact analysis of using procalcitonin to optimize antimicrobial treatment for patients with suspected sepsis in the intensive care unit and hospitalized lower respiratory tract infections in Argentina.

Osvaldo Ulises Garay, Gonzalo Guiñazú, Wanda Cornistein, Javier Farina, Ricardo Valentini, Gabriel Levy Hara

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in PloS one, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
0.5field-weighted citation impact, top 33% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed, 4 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Review
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors at 5 institutions in 1 country.

Osvaldo Ulises GarayMarket Access and Medical Affairs, Roche Diagnostics, Buenos Aires, Argentina.ORCID 0000-0002-4836-4247
Gonzalo GuiñazúRicardo Gutiérrez Children's Hospital, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Wanda CornisteinInfection Control, Hospital Austral, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Javier FarinaHospital Cuenca Alta Néstor Kirchner, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Ricardo ValentiniCEMIC University Hospital, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Gabriel Levy HaraUnit of Infectious Diseases, Hospital Carlos G Durand, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Centro de Educación Médica e Investigaciones Clínicas Norberto Quirno · AREl Hospital General de Agudos Carlos G. Durand · ARHospital El Cruce · ARHospital General de Niños Ricardo Gutierrez · ARHospital Universitario Austral · AR

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundInappropriate antibiotic use represents a major global threat. Sepsis and bacterial lower respiratory tract infections (LRTIs) have been linked to antimicrobial resistance, carrying important consequences for patients and health systems. Procalcitonin-guided algorithms may represent helpful tools to reduce antibiotic overuse but the financial burden is unclear. The aim of this study was to estimate the healthcare and budget impact in Argentina of using procalcitonin-guided algorithms to guide antibiotic prescription.

methodsA decision tree was used to model health and cost outcomes for the Argentinean health system, over a one-year duration. Patients with suspected sepsis in the intensive care unit and hospitalized patients with LRTI were included. Model parameters were obtained from a focused, non-systematic, local and international bibliographic search, and validated by a panel of local experts. Deterministic and probabilistic sensitivity analyses were performed to analyze the uncertainty of parameters.

resultsThe model predicted that using procalcitonin-guided algorithms would result in 734.5 [95% confidence interval (CI): 1,105.2;438.8] thousand fewer antibiotic treatment days, 7.9 [95% CI: 18.5;8.5] thousand antibiotic-resistant cases avoided, and 5.1 [95% CI: 6.7;4.2] thousand fewer Clostridioides difficile cases. In total, this would save $422.4 US dollars (USD) [95% CI: $935;$267] per patient per year, meaning cost savings of $83.0 [95% CI: $183.6;$57.7] million USD for the entire health system and $0.4 [95% CI: $0.9;$0.3] million USD for a healthcare provider with 1,000 cases per year of sepsis and LRTI patients. The sensitivity analysis showed that the probability of cost-saving for the sepsis patient group was lower than for the LRTI patient group (85% vs. 100%).

conclusionsHealthcare and financial benefits can be obtained by implementing procalcitonin-guided algorithms in Argentina. Although we found results to be robust on an aggregate level, some caution must be used when focusing only on sepsis patients in the intensive care unit.

Indexed as

Cost-Benefit AnalysisAnti-Infective AgentsAntimicrobial StewardshipArgentinaClostridioides difficileHospitalizationHumansIntensive Care UnitsProcalcitoninRespiratory Tract InfectionsSepsisAnti-Infective AgentsProcalcitonin

Identifiers

PMID33930050
PMCPMC8087000
OpenAlexW3157783724

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.