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Necrotising otitis externa: the increasing financial burden on the National Health Service

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 November 2021

J Godbehere ,
K H Hutson  and
G J Watson
J Godbehere
Affiliation:
Department of Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery, The Rotherham NHS Foundation Trust, Rotherham, UK
K H Hutson
Affiliation:
Department of Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery, Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Sheffield, UK
G J Watson*
Affiliation:
Department of Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery, Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Sheffield, UK
*
Author for correspondence: Mr G J Watson, Department of ENT, Royal Hallamshire Hospital, Sheffield Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, Glossop Road, SheffieldS10 2JF, UK E-mail: glen.watson2@nhs.net
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Abstract

Objective

Necrotising otitis externa is increasingly being seen and treated within the UK. The aim of this study was to explore the potential cost of a cohort of patients with necrotising otitis externa presenting to a single tertiary NHS trust.

Method

This was a retrospective study with data from 14 patients with confirmed necrotising otitis externa who were treated, monitored, discharged or who died between October 2016 and November 2018. Direct costs using the tariffs from the 2018 to 2019 financial year included in-patient stay, imaging, peripheral inserted central catheter line cost, ENT and out-patient parenteral antibiotic therapy visits and antimicrobial duration.

Results

The mean cost of treatment per patient was £17 615 (range, £9407 to £38 230) with an extreme outlier costing more than £122 000.

Conclusion

Awareness and education at a primary care level and research into robust imaging to aid termination of treatment may lower costs in the future by catching pathology early and reducing treatment duration.

Keywords

Skull BaseOtitis ExternaPseudomonas Management
Type
Main Article
Information
The Journal of Laryngology & Otology , Volume 136 , Issue 8 , August 2022 , pp. 730 - 733
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2021. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of J.L.O. (1984) LIMITED

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Footnotes

Mr G J Watson takes responsibility for the integrity of the content of the paper

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