Abstract
IntroductionSurgical site infections (SSIs) are among the most common and potentially serious complications after surgery. Staphylococcus aureus is a virulent pathogen frequently identified as a cause of SSI. As vaccines and other infection control measures are developed to reduce SSI risk, cost-utility analyses (CUA) of these interventions are needed to inform resource allocation decisions. A recent systematic review found that available SSI utilities are of “questionable quality.” Therefore, the purpose of this study was to estimate the disutility (i.e., utility decrease) associated with SSIs.MethodsIn time trade-off interviews, general population participants in the UK (London, Edinburgh) valued health states drafted based on literature and clinician interviews. Health states described either joint or spine surgery, with or without an SSI. The utility difference between otherwise identical health states with and without the SSI represented the disutility associated with the SSI.ResultsA total of 201 participants completed interviews (50.2% female; mean age = 46.2 years). Mean (SD) utilities of health states describing joint and spine surgery without infections were 0.79 (0.23) and 0.78 (0.23). Disutilities of SSIs ranged from − 0.03 to − 0.32, depending on severity of the infection and subsequent medical interventions. All differences between corresponding health with and without SSIs were statistically significant (all p < 0.001).ConclusionThe preference-based SSI disutilities derived in this study may be used to represent mild and serious SSIs in CUAs assessing and comparing the value of vaccinations that may reduce the risk of SSIs.
Highlights
Surgical site infections (SSIs) are among the most common and potentially serious complications after surgery
Of the 109 respondents who reported having some type of surgery, 5 (4.6%) reported spine surgery, 9 (8.3%) reported knee surgery, and 1 (0.9%) reported hip surgery, while the other 94 (86.2%) had experienced surgery that was not described in the health states
Disutility was greater for health states describing more severe infections that require more invasive interventions
Summary
Surgical site infections (SSIs) are among the most common and potentially serious complications after surgery. As vaccines and other infection control measures are developed to reduce SSI risk, cost-utility analyses (CUA) of these interventions are needed to inform resource allocation decisions. Mean (SD) utilities of health states describing joint and spine surgery without infections were 0.79 (0.23) and 0.78 (0.23). Conclusion The preference-based SSI disutilities derived in this study may be used to represent mild and serious SSIs in CUAs assessing and comparing the value of vaccinations that may reduce the risk of SSIs. Surgical site infections (SSIs) are among the most common and potentially serious complications after surgery [1]. As vaccines and other infection control measures are introduced to reduce SSI risk [3, 7, 8], economic modeling is needed to assess their value and inform resource allocation decisions [9]. Utilities are values anchored to 0 (dead) and 1 (full health) that quantify the strength of preference for health states [12, 13]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
