The Economic Burden Of The Families With Birth Defects Children In Hunan Province

Objective:To investigate the economic burdens of the families with birthdefect children during medical behaviors,including direct economic burdens and indirect economic burdens.Methods:This cross-section study were conducted among families with birth-defect children recorded in Hunan birth defection monitoring system,which were stratified sampled from 3 different types of area,including high-income,medium-income and low-income developed area,based on local economic developments.Queries generated by our groups were used to investigate the economic cost during medical behaviors of families with birth-defect children within past 1 year via face-to-face meetings or by phone.Main information were collected including:1.Medical conditions of children.2.Social demographic information of guardians.3.Common information of families.3.Medical behaviors and its economic cost,including cost from clinics,hospitals,rehabilitation therapy and self-treatments.4.Cost of transportations,accommodations and foods during medical behaviors.5.Charges for loss time of working or other economic loss due to medical behavior.Results:(1)In the past year,the surveyed families had a total economic burden of 8 087 200 yuan due to birth defects and used health services 468 times.The average disease economic burden was 32 200 yuan.Based on the average burden data obtained in this study,based on the province’s birth defect registration data and the number of children born in a year,the province’s families with children with birth defects have suffered an economic loss of about 3.082 billion due to birth defects in the past year.Yuan.(2)In the past year,the total direct economic burden of 251 children’s families due to birth defects was 7.61 million yuan,30 400 yuan per case,and 16 300 yuan per time.Among the direct economic burdens,direct medical and health care expenses are the main(92.0%),which is 7.01 million yuan,with 27 900 per case and 15 000 per time.The direct nonmedical health care expenses were 608 800 yuan(8.0%),with an average of 2,425.33 yuan per case and 1,300.76 yuan per time.(3)In the past year,the indirect economic burden of the families of 251 children due to birth defects was mainly the lost work expenses incurred by the caregivers of the children for accompanying the children,with a total of 2 902 days of lost work days and a total of 469,000 yuan of lost work expenses;The average daily cost of lost work is 161.62 yuan,and the second is 1 002.17 yuan.(4)Cardiocirculatory system defects and digestive system defects had the heaviest disease economic burdens,58 200 yuan and 65 800 yuan,respectively.Followed by cleft lip and palate 20 400 yuan,chromosomal abnormalities 15 100 yuan.The lightest were inherited metabolic diseases represented by congenital hypothyroidism and broad bean disease,with an average of 489.58 yuan per case.(5)In 64 cases of children from low-level development areas,the average economic burden of disease caused by birth defects in the past year was 58,200 yuan,and the average time was 22 400 yuan;62 cases of children from medium-level economic development areas,the past one The average economic burden of diseases caused by birth defects in the past year was 35 000 yuan,and the average time was 16 200 yuan;125 cases of children from areas with high economic development levels,the average economic burden of diseases caused by birth defects in the past year 17600 yuan,an average of 13 100 yuan per time.Conclusion:(1)In this study,the average disease economic burden of birth defects was 32 200 yuan,and the average direct economic burden was 30 400 yuan.The direct medical care cost is 27 900 yuan,the direct nonmedical care cost is 2 400 yuan,and the indirect economic burden is 1 900 yuan.(2)Among the different types of birth defect diseases,the heart circulatory system defects and digestive system defects have the heaviest economic burden of disease per case.Followed by cleft lip and palate and chromosomal abnormalities.The lightest is genetic metabolic disease.(3)Among different regions,the three types of regions have the heaviest disease economic burden,and the direct medical care costs and direct non-medical care costs are higher than the first and second types of regions.