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Comorbid conditions are associated with healthcare utilization, medical charges and mortality of patients with rheumatoid arthritis

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Abstract

This study aims to examine the associations between comorbid conditions and healthcare utilization, medical charges, or mortality of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Nebraska state emergency department (ED) discharge, hospital discharge, and death certificate data from 2007 to 2012 were used to study the comorbid conditions of patients with RA. RA was defined using the standard International Classification of Diseases (ICD-9-CM 714 or ICD-10-CM M05, M06, and M08). There were more comorbid conditions in patients with RA than in patients without RA. Comorbid conditions were majorly related to healthcare utilization and mortality of patients with RA. In addition to injury, fracture, sprains, and strains, symptoms of cardiovascular and digestive systems, respiratory infection, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) were common comorbid conditions for ED visits. In addition to joint replacement and fracture, infections, COPD and cardiovascular comorbidities were common comorbid conditions for hospitalizations. Cardiovascular, cerebrovascular, and respiratory comorbidities, dementia, malignant neoplasm, and diabetes mellitus were common comorbid conditions for deaths of patients with RA. In addition, the numbers of comorbid conditions were significantly associated with the length of hospital stay and hospital charges for patients with RA. The findings in this study indicated that comorbid conditions are associated with healthcare utilization, medical charges, and mortality of patients with RA.

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    Authors and Affiliations

    1. Wuxi Medical School, Jiangnan University, Wuxi, Jiangsu, 214122, People’s Republic of China

      Guang-Ming Han & Xiao-Feng Han

    2. Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services, Lincoln, NE, 68509, USA

      Guang-Ming Han

    3. Department of Epidemiology, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE, USA

      Guang-Ming Han

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    1. Guang-Ming Han
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    2. Xiao-Feng Han
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    Correspondence to Guang-Ming Han or Xiao-Feng Han.

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    Significance and innovations

    This study showed that there are more comorbid conditions in patients with RA than in patients without RA.

    This study provided that comorbid conditions are majorly related to healthcare utilization and mortality of patients with RA.

    The results suggested that the numbers of comorbid conditions are significantly associated with the length of hospital stay for patients with RA.

    The results suggested that the numbers of comorbid conditions are significantly associated with hospital charges for patients with RA.

    Guang-Ming Han and Xiao-Feng Han contributed equally to this work.

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    Han, GM., Han, XF. Comorbid conditions are associated with healthcare utilization, medical charges and mortality of patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Clin Rheumatol 35, 1483–1492 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10067-016-3277-y

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    • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10067-016-3277-y

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