Few studies from low- and middle-income countries have assessed stroke and cerebral reperfusion costs from the private sector. Objective To measure the in-hospital costs of ischemic stroke (IS), with and without cerebral reperfusion, primary intracerebral hemorrhage (PIH), subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) and transient ischemic attacks (TIA) in two private hospitals in Joinville, Brazil. Methods Prospective disease-cost study. All medical and nonmedical costs for patients admitted with any stroke type or TIA were consecutively determined in 2016-17. All costs were adjusted to the gross domestic product deflator index and purchasing power parity. Results We included 173 patients. The median cost per patient was US$3,827 (IQR: 2,800-8,664) for the 131 IS patients; US$2,315 (IQR: 1,692-2,959) for the 27 TIA patients; US$16,442 (IQR: 5,108-33,355) for the 11 PIH patients and US$28,928 (IQR: 12,424-48,037) for the four SAH patients (p < 0.00001). For the six IS patients who underwent intravenous thrombolysis, the median cost per patient was US$11,463 (IQR: 8,931-14,291), and for the four IS patients who underwent intra-arterial thrombectomy, the median cost per patient was US$35,092 (IQR: 31,833-37,626; p < 0.0001). A direct correlation was found between cost and length of stay (r = 0.67, p < 0.001). Conclusions Stroke is a costly disease. In the private sector, the costs of cerebral reperfusion for IS treatment were three-to-ten times higher than for usual treatments. Therefore, cost-effectiveness studies are urgently needed in low- and middle-income countries.

Low- and middle-income countries face tight health care budgets, not only new resources, but also costly therapeutic resources for treatment of ischemic stroke (IS). However, few prospective data about stroke costs including cerebral reperfusion from low- and middle-income countries are available. Objective To measure the costs of stroke care in a public hospital in Joinville, Brazil. Methods We prospectively assessed all medical and nonmedical costs of inpatients admitted with a diagnosis of any stroke or transient ischemic attack over one year, analyzed costs per type of stroke and treatment, length of stay (LOS) and compared hospital costs with government reimbursement. Results We evaluated 274 patients. The total cost for the year was US$1,307,114; the government reimbursed the hospital US$1,095,118. We found a significant linear correlation between LOS and costs (r = 0.71). The median cost of 134 IS inpatients who did not undergo cerebral reperfusion (National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale [NIHSS] median = 3 ) was US$2,803; for IS patients who underwent intravenous (IV) alteplase (NIHSS 10), the median was US$5,099, and for IS patients who underwent IV plus an intra-arterial (IA) thrombectomy (NIHSS > 10), the median cost was US$10,997. The median costs of a primary intracerebral hemorrhage, subarachnoid hemorrhage, and transient ischemic attack were US$2,436, US$8,031 and US$2,677, respectively. Conclusions Reperfusion treatments were two-to-four times more expensive than conservative treatment. A cost-effectiveness study of the IS treatment option is necessary.

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Introduction: In-person hematology appointments (IHA) are not available in most hospitals and outpatient centers in the state of Santa Catarina, Brazil. Primary care physician (PCP) based hematology telemedicine consultation (HTC) has the potential of being a valuable and cost-effective tool for patients and PCPs. While it has not been previously assessed in our country, it may avoid unnecessary IHA, which frequently require traveling to major cities, reduce waiting times for an IHA, and advise PCPs on better assessing patients that may need a hematology referral. Methods: Sistema Integrado Catarinense de Telemedicina is a statewide online tool to which all public health system PCPs have access. It enables PCPs to set up asynchronous HTCs that are randomly distributed to reference hematology treatment centers. HEMOSC Joinville is one such center and is responsible for approximately one fifth of all HTCs. We prospectively assessed all HTC requests in non-malignant hematology between August 2019 and July 2021 for main clinical features that prompted a hematology referral. All cases with confirmed or likely diagnosis of hematological malignancy under the 2017 World Health Organization (WHO) classification were excluded. WHO anemia definition and severity classification was observed. Severe neutropenia and thrombocytopenia required counts below 500 and 50,000 per microliter. For every HTC, a single diagnostic hypothesis in hematology (DHH) was established based on patient data provided by the PCP. Results: Seven hundred and ninety consecutive patients aged 15 or older were included. Median age at HTC was 55 years (interquartile range, IQR: 39-70), with 282 patients (36%) aged 60 or more. Sixty percent of patients (n=472) were women, with 26 pregnant women (3%) at a median gestational age of 15 weeks (IQR: 12-21). Major DHHs were iron deficiency anemia (n=123, 16%), anemia of undetermined cause (n=107, 14%) and unexplained thrombocytopenia (n=102, 13%). Cytopenias accounted for 499 (63%) of all DHHs. Abnormal complete blood count (CBC) or coagulation tests were the sole reason for HTC, in the absence of any attributable clinical finding, in 597 cases (76%). DHHs were adequately formulated by PCP in 140 cases (18%). CBC information was provided in 594 cases (75%), with mild anemia (n=188, 32%) being the most frequent finding. Median hemoglobin when anemia was the DHH was 10 g/dL (IQR: 8.7 - 11.1). Absence of red blood cell (RBC) indices, differential leukocyte counts and platelet counts were seen in 261 (44%), 441 (74%) and 251 (42%) cases. CBC was collected in excess of 60 days prior to HTC in 118 patients (20%) and no CBC information was provided for 196 patients (25%), 31% of which (n=60) had a cytopenia as DHH. Blood transfusions were reported within 60 days of HTC in 49 patients (6%), and an emergency department evaluation was suggested by the hematology specialist for 72 patients (9%). One hundred and ninety (24%) patients were referred to an IHA after HTC, of which 21 (3%), 115 (15%) and 54 (7%) received low, intermediate and high priority for an appointment. Conclusions: Over the reported two-year period, HTC has prevented 3 in every 4 IHA in our patient population. This is especially relevant considering the need for social distancing and the socioeconomic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. Follow-up analyses of these patients to identify IHA at a later date and the confirmation of hematological diagnosis are in order. This study also uncovers inappropriate CBC interpretation and reporting, and failure to associate clinical symptoms and patient history to laboratory findings, which in turn demands providing PCPs with continued medical education in hematology. Figure 1 Figure 1. Disclosures Boettcher: Novartis: Speakers Bureau.

Autoimmune polyglandular syndromes (APS) are a diverse group of clinical conditions characterized by loss of immune tolerance in various tissues. This condition can be diagnosed in childhood or adulthood, with changes in the components of the disease throughout life. Here, an unusual case of association between immune-mediated diseases will be addressed: Myasthenia Gravis, Systemic Lupus Erythematosus, and Celiac Disease. In this patient, each disease was expressed over time. Finally, we assume that this is a clinical form of APS type IV, due to the lack of thyroid involvement to date.