Does Severity of the Bony Facial Trauma Score Predict Cost of Management in Patients with Facial Trauma: A Large Database Study.

Abstract

Background: The Bony Facial Trauma Score (BFTS) was developed to standardize the extent of injury in facial trauma and improve communication between health care providers.

Objective: To determine if BFTS scores in patients with facial trauma are correlated with the hospital's cost of treating the patient.

Methods: A retrospective chart review of 1,086 patients with facial fractures from 2010 to 2021 was performed. Patient information, BFTS score, length of stay (LOS), and hospital charges were collected. Spearman's correlations and multivariable regression analysis measured the association between cost and BFTS score.

Results: The average cost of management was $13,939.04 (SD: 27,573.17) per patient and the average LOS was 4.96 (SD: 9.86) days. The average BFTS score was 5.49 (SD: 4.25). BFTS had a moderately positive correlation with total cost (r = 0.40, p < 0.001), with each additional point predicting an increase of $1,309 in cost (p = 0.017). The BFTS also had a weakly positive correlation with LOS (r = 0.29, p < 0.001). Patients managed surgically were found to have higher BFTS scores than those managed conservatively (7.0 vs. 4.3, p < 0.001).

Conclusions: BFTS correlates with hospital cost, LOS, and need for surgery, supporting its role as a standardized tool to quantify facial trauma severity and anticipate cost and resource utilization in clinical care.