The direct healthcare costs attributable to West Nile virus illness in Ontario, Canada: a population-based cohort study using laboratory and health administrative data.

ABSTRACT:

Background

West Nile virus (WNV) is a mosquito-borne flavivirus, first detected in the Western Hemisphere in 1999 and spread across North America over the next decade. Though endemic in the most populous areas of North America, few studies have estimated the healthcare costs associated with WNV. The objective of this study was to determine direct healthcare costs attributable to WNV illness in Ontario, Canada.

Methods

We conducted a cost-of-illness study on incident laboratory confirmed and probable WNV infected subjects identified from the provincial laboratory database from Jan 1, 2002 through Dec 31, 2012. Infected subjects were linked to health administrative data and matched to uninfected subjects. We used phase-of-care methods to calculate costs for 3 phases of illness

SUBMITTER: Shing E 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6918579 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature