The economic impact of increased length of stay associated with surgical site infections in liver transplantation on Canadian healthcare costs

Background Complications after liver transplantation cause additional healthcare costs. The objective of this study was to contrast the length of stay (LOS) costs for recipients with and without surgical site infections (SSIs). Methods This retrospective observational cohort study was conducted at a transplant center in Canada, between February 2011 and August 2014. The difference in the LOS costs was assessed by the Mann–Whitney U test, while multiple linear regression analysis was used to identify the variables that may have impacted on the costs. Results Two hundred and twenty‐nine liver transplant recipients were enrolled. Thirty‐six recipients developed SSIs (36/229, 15.7%). The median LOS costs in recipients with and without SSIs were $39,456 Canadian dollars (interquartile range $25,696‐ 59,722) and $31,084 Canadian dollars (interquartile range $22,712‐49 610), respectively (p = .072). There was a trend that the costs were higher for those recipients with versus those without SSIs (p = .088). Transfusion of ≥ 5 units of red cells and dialysis before transplantation impacted on cost. Conclusion There was a trend for higher healthcare facility costs for recipients with SSIs. Red cell transfusions and greater dialysis use before transplant were factors associated with the cost. Implementation of cost reduction strategies targeting high‐cost recipients is necessary.