ReviewHealth science reports2026
Determinants of Healthcare Costs in Individuals With Down Syndrome: A Systematic Review.
Review in Health science reports, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. An erratum has been issued. Not yet cited in PubMed.
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.
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.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
- Erratum issued
Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Background: Individuals with Down syndrome (DS) require specialized medical follow-up and services more frequently than the general population, resulting in substantial healthcare costs for families and health systems. This systematic review aimed to synthesize evidence on the magnitude and determinants of direct healthcare and indirect costs associated with DS. Methods: We searched Web of Science, PubMed, and Scopus for observational and experimental studies published in English between January 1, 2000, and December 31, 2022 (updated June 15, 2024), that reported healthcare costs or cost determinants for individuals with DS. Reference lists were also screened. We excluded non-English papers, qualitative studies, reviews, protocols, editorials, and gray literature. Results: The search identified 625 unique citations, of which 14 matched the inclusion criteria. Half were conducted in the USA. Inpatient services constituted the largest share of direct healthcare costs in 58% of studies. Indirect costs, mainly productivity losses among families, were reported in 25% of studies. Healthcare costs were highest during infancy (driven primarily by congenital heart defects and early hospitalizations), decreased throughout childhood and adolescence, and increased again in adulthood, particularly after age 40, due to age-related comorbidities such as dementia and multimorbidity. Associated morbidities, greater functional limitations, and lower socioeconomic status were consistently associated with higher costs. Conclusions: Age, comorbidities, functional ability, and socioeconomic factors are key drivers of healthcare costs in DS. Long-term, comprehensive policies integrating medical, social, and educational support are needed. Priority should be given to early cardiac surgery coverage, multidisciplinary adult transition clinics, subsidized respite care, and financial assistance schemes to reduce both inpatient utilization and family productivity losses.
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Registered trials
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.