The economic burden of ventriculoperitoneal shunt insertion and its complications: findings from a cohort in the Philippines.

Purpose: Ventriculoperitoneal shunt (VPS) insertion is the gold standard treatment for congenital hydrocephalus, but there is little data about the cost of this procedure in developing countries. We aimed to determine the in-hospitalization cost of initial VPS insertion and its complications (malfunction and infection) and identify predictors of increased cost.

Methods: We performed a retrospective cohort study by reviewing the medical and financial records of pediatric patients with congenital hydrocephalus and underwent shunt surgery at our institution between 2015 and 2019. We also performed multivariable linear regression analysis to determine clinical characteristics that were predictive of cost.

Results: A total of 230 cerebrospinal fluid diversion procedures were performed on 125 patients. The mean age during index VPS insertion was 9.8 months (range: 7 days-8 years). Over a median follow-up of 222 days, 15 patients (12%) developed shunt malfunction while 25 (20%) had a shunt infection. The mean in-hospitalization cost for all patients was PHP 94,573.50 (USD 1815). The predictors of higher cost included shunt infection (p < 0.001), shunt malfunction (p < 0.001), pneumonia (p = 0.006), sepsis (p = 0.004), and length of hospital stay (p = 0.005). Patients complicated by shunt infection had a higher mean cost (PHP 282,631.60; USD 5425) than uncomplicated patients (PHP 40,587.20 or USD 779; p < 0.001) and patients who had shunt malfunction (PHP 87,065.70 or USD 1671; p < 0.001).

Conclusion: The study provided current data on the in-hospitalization cost of VPS insertion in a public tertiary hospital in a developing country. Shunt infection, malfunction, pneumonia, sepsis, and length of hospital stay were significant predictors of cost.