Abstract
PURPOSE: To identify the potential impact of sports participation on healthcare costs among Brazilian adults. METHODS: The sample was composed of 620 adults (166 males and 454 females) aged 50 years or older followed from 2010 to 2014 in the city of Bauru, Sao Paulo, Brazil (FAPESP Research Project). Physical activity was assessed using questionnaire (Baecke et al. Am J Clin Nutr, 1982 [face-to-face interview]) and subjects were stratified according to the engagement in sports in leisure-time (180 minutes/week over the last four months) as: Engaged (n= 99) and Non-engaged (n= 521). Annual healthcare costs covered by the Brazilian National Health Service were assessed from 2010 to 2014 (in US dollar [US$]), including expenditures with medicine, appointments and exams. Analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) adjusted by sex, age and body mass index compared monetary values between the two groups, while statistical significance (p-value) was set as p-value lower than 0.05 and effect-size was expressed using eta-squared values. RESULTS: From 2010 to 2014, the amount of money spent by these 620 adults accounted US$ 207,175.00. Adults engaged in sports spent less with healthcare services (US$ 260.61 [95%CI: 184.09 to 337.14]) than their peers non-engaged in sports (US$ 348.12 [95%CI: 315.01 to 381.23]). The magnitude of the difference was small (eta-squared= 0.007 [0.7%]), but significant (p-value= 0.040). CONCLUSIONS: Sports participation was a determinant factor on decreasing the expenditure with healthcare services among Brazilian adults. This finding highlight the importance of public health actions promoting healthy behaviors aiming the prevention of harmful health outcomes and reduced healthcare costs, especially in countries with unified health systems.
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