PREDyCES study: The cost of hospital malnutrition in Spain

Abstract

Objectives: The aim of this study was to analyze the economic effects of hospital malnutrition and the cost of longer hospital stays according to the Prevalence of Hospital Malnutrition and Associated Costs in Spain (PREDyCES) study data. Methods: This was a nested case–control study in a prospective cohort of patients (n ¼ 114) who were at nutritional risk at admission and controls (n ¼ 354) who were not at risk at admission. The total cost of hospital stay was the cost of the bed plus the cost of drugs administered during the stay. Hospital costs were extrapolated to Spanish National Health System admissions for 2009. Results: The mean hospital length of stay for patients at risk (cases) was significantly longer (11.5 7.5 versus 8.5 5.8 d; P < 0.001) than for the controls. The cost of patients at risk at admission was significantly higher than that of those not at risk (V8590 V6127 versus V7085 V5625; P ¼ 0.015). The most significant difference in the cost of the hospital stay was observed between controls at nutritional risk at discharge and controls who remained not at risk throughout the hospital stay (V13 013 V9086 versus V6665 V5091; P < 0.001). Extrapolation of the study findings to Spanish National Health System hospital admissions showed that the potential cost of hospital malnutrition in Spain was at least V1.143 billion per year. Conclusion: Hospital malnutrition in Spain is associated with substantial costs, suggesting the need to establish procedures for screening, diagnosing, and treating malnutrition.