The Economic Impact of Laparoscopic Surgery

Abstract

This report presents findings concerning the economic impacts of laparoscopic surgery. The study addresses hospital costs, physician costs and short-term disability costs. Specifically, the study addresses hospital costs, and not the hospital charges often reported by studies in the literature. The costs of four different laparoscopic procedures (laparoscopic cholecystectomy, laparoscopic inguinal herniorraphy, laparoscopically assisted vaginal hysterectomy, and thoracoscopic wedge resection) are examined relative to the costs of their "open" counterparts. The hospital cost analysis addresses the cost of equipment and instrumentation required for laparoscopic surgery, since these are important cost drivers for laparoscopic cases.

Data to determine hospital costs was obtained from nine hospitals throughout the United States. At each hospital site, the research team spent four to five days on-site interviewing surgeons, OR staff, hospital administrators and other personnel, as well as gathering additional data. Short-term disability cost and physician cost data were gathered from two large employers.

Findings show that laparoscopic approaches are a cost effective alternative to traditional open surgery. When total system costs are considered, each of the four procedures analyzed in this study is cost-effective. When the narrower view of hospital costs is taken, two of the laparoscopic approaches save money relative to their open counterparts, one is about equal in cost, and one is somewhat more expensive than its open counterpart. Analysis of operating room equipment and supplies indicates that single-use laparoscopic instruments are a cost effective alternative to reusable instruments. In addition, single-use instruments have many benefits that were not possible to quantify accurately in this study. Finally, laparoscopic cholecystectomy reduces disability costs relative to open cholecystectomy and potential exists to reduce disability costs further by ensuring that employees return to work soon after they resume normal activity.

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"The Economic Impact of Laparoscopic Surgery" here.