Download PDF
CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 · Endosc Int Open 2023; 11(06): E571-E580
DOI: 10.1055/a-2064-9721
Original article

Single-use duodenoscopes compared with reusable duodenoscopes in patients carrying multidrug-resistant microorganisms: a break-even cost analysis

Judith A. Kwakman 
1   Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Erasmus MC University Medical Centre, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
2   Department of Medical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, Erasmus MC University Medical Centre, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
,
Marten J. Poley
3   Institute for Medical Technology Assessment (iMTA) & Erasmus School of Health Policy & Management (ESHPM), Erasmus University Rotterdam, The Netherlands
4   Department of Pediatric Surgery and Intensive Care, Sophia Children’s Hospital, Erasmus MC University Medical Centre, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
,
Margreet C. Vos‡
2   Department of Medical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, Erasmus MC University Medical Centre, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
,
Marco J. Bruno‡
1   Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Erasmus MC University Medical Centre, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
› Author Affiliations
› Further Information
Also available at
   Permissions and Reprints

Abstract

Background and study aims Single-use duodenoscopes can prevent transmission of microorganisms through contaminated reusable duodenoscopes. Concerns regarding their economic and environmental impact impede the transition to single-use duodenoscopes. This study investigated the costs associated with two scenarios in which single-use duodenoscopes are used in patients carrying multidrug-resistant microorganisms (MDROs).

Methods Break-even costs for single-use duodenoscopes were calculated for two scenarios in which patients were screened for MDRO carriage before undergoing endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP). Only direct costs related to the endoscopy were taken into consideration. In Scenario 1, patients were screened through microbiological culturing with a lag time in receiving the test result. In Scenario 2, screening was performed using GeneXpert analysis providing a rapid read-out. Calculations were performed using data from a Dutch tertiary care center and also with US healthcare data.

Results In the Dutch situation, single-use duodenoscopes needed to be priced at a maximum of € 140 to € 250 to break-even. In the US analyses, break-even costs varied widely, depending on the duodenoscope-associated infection costs used, ERCP volume, and infection risk. The break-even costs in Scenario 1 ranged between $78.21 and $2,747.54 and in Scenario 2, between $248.89 and $2,209.23.

Conclusions This study showed that a crossover scenario in which single-use duodenoscopes are only used in patients carrying MDROs could be an economically viable alternative to a complete transition to single-use duodenoscopes. In the Dutch setting, single-use duodenoscopes need to be priced much lower than in the United States to reach a per-procedure cost that is comparable with a scenario using reusable duodenoscopes exclusively.



Publication History

Received: 11 October 2022

Accepted after revision: 21 March 2023

Article published online:
09 June 2023

© 2023. The Author(s). This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonDerivative-NonCommercial License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit. Contents may not be used for commercial purposes, or adapted, remixed, transformed or built upon. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)

Georg Thieme Verlag KG
Rüdigerstraße 14, 70469 Stuttgart, Germany