A latest research shows that treatments related to kidney stones can be risky and expensive.
Researchers explain that low-risk treatments lead to complications that can end up costing the patient more with need for further surgeries and procedures.
For the study, researchers examined more than 93,000 patients with private insurance who were hospitalized in the U.S. for kidney stones. They concentrated on three different types of treatments; shock-wave lithotripsy, ureteroscopy and percutaneous nephrolithotom. For shock-wave lithotripsy, doctors use a lithotripter to squash the kidney stone. In ureteroscopy, a long, tube-like tool is used to crack the stone. In percutaneous nephrolithotom, a wire thin instrument is used to locate and remove the stone. All three procedures require anesthesia, according to the U.S. National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK).
On the whole, one in seven kidney stone patients suffered from complications that resulted to longer hospital stays or emergency care within 30 days after treatment, the study findings revealed. It cost the patients an average of $30,000 each.
The researchers noted that the highest rate of complications were in patients who underwent ureteroscopy at 15 percent and 12 percent of patients had complications due to shock-wave lithotripsy. Those who had percutaneous nephrolithotom paid the highest cost; an average of $47,000 per patient. Shock-wave lithotripsy patients paid an average of $32,000 each for complications arising from the treatment.
"Our findings provide a good starting point to understand why these complications are happening and how they can be prevented, because the costs to patients who suffer complications and to the health care system are substantial," lead author Dr. Charles Scales Jr., an assistant professor of surgery at Duke University said in a press release. "From the patient perspective, an unplanned emergency department visit or hospital admission after a low-risk ambulatory procedure is a significant event. Kidney stones are excruciatingly painful and primarily affect people who are of working age. These patients face not only the cost of treatment, but also the financial difficulties from time off work due to pain and treatment."
"Reducing unplanned emergency visits and hospitalizations associated with kidney stone treatments could result in significant cost savings if the causes can be identified and addressed."
The study was published in 'Surgery.'
