Much higher hospital costs (ICU and pneumonia) if low vitamin D – Dec 2015

1300: ECONOMIC IMPACT OF VITAMIN D LEVELS LESS THAN 18 NG/ML ON HOSPITALS AND THIRD PARTY PAYERS

Matthews, Leslie; Wilson, Kenneth; Ahmed, Yusuf; Dennis-Griggs, Diane; Thomas, Carol; Childs, Ed; Moore, Carolyn; Danner, Omar
Critical Care Medicine, Issue: Volume 43(12) Supplement 1, December 2015, p 327

Learning Objectives: Vitamin D3 levels less than 18 ng/ml is associated with increased mortality rate of 30% from all causes. The economic impact of vitamin D3 deficiency has been unknown. We hypothesize that a vitamin D3 less than 18 ng/ml increases the financial burden on hospitals in terms of ICU cost, Hospital ward cost, ventilated associated pneumonias, myocardial infarctions, and total hospital days.
Methods: We looked at 2 groups of patients at Grady Memorial Hospital from 2009 -2012. Those with vitamin D levels less than 18ng/ml and those with vitamin D levels greater than 18 ng/ml. Primary outcomes were ICU cost, total hospital cost, VAP, MI, and total hospital days.
   [comment by Vitamin D Life: VAP = ventilator-associated pneumonia]
Results: Of the 565 patients included in the study, 26.7% (n=162) were female vs. 71.3% (n=403) males, 31.3 %(n=177) patients were Caucasian and 66.4% (n=375) were African American. 20.2% (n=114)

• developed ventilated assisted pneumonia, 5.8% (n=33)
• suffered Myocardial infarction during the hospital stay.

Comparing between the two groups; patients with vitamin D levels less than 18ng/ml suffered more VAP (24.3% vs. 15.5%, P= 0.024), MI (7.6% vs. 2.8%, P= 0.031), stayed longer in ICU (11.4 ± 0.95 vs. 8.11 ± 1.1 days, P= 0.03), hospital ward (23.4 ± 1.96, vs. 15.27 ± 1.5, days P 0.005), as well as increased ICU financial cost ($43,965 ± 3,683 vs. 31,274 ± 4,311, P=0.033) and Hospital ward cost ($29,780 ± 2,501 vs. 19,418 ± 1,923, P=0.005).

VAP and MI's added $40,000 and $70,000 to hospital costs, respectively.

Conclusions: Vitamin D3 deficiency is associated with a significant financial impact on hospital and third party payers.
Further studies are needed to calculate the full economic impact on hospitals, states, countries, and third party payers.

See also Vitamin D Life

• Heart Attack ICU costs reduced $37,000 by $20 of Vitamin D – Nov 2015 also by Dr. Mathews
• Vitamin D deficiency again associated with higher cost of health care – April 2015
• Optimum Vitamin D for bones might be 40 ng – Oct 2014
• All items in category Cost Savings with Vitamin D 138 items
• Healthy pregnancies need lots of vitamin D has the following summary

RCT = Randomized Controlled Trial
and includes the cost savings to an HMO which gives Vitamin D during 10,000 pregnancies
   $30,000,000

See also web

• Vitamin D Council review of this study

10 Most visited Vitamin D Life pages in (Category) Cost savings with Vitamin D