Estimativa do custo do tratamento ambulatorial e cirúrgico da obesidade no Sistema Único de Saúde brasileiro

Abstract

Introduction: The prevalence of obesity has tripled in the last four decades in the world, from 4.8% in 1975 to 12.8% in 2014. In Brazil, there was an increase of 6.3% in the prevalence of obesity from 2006 to 2014. The Brazilian Unified Health System had an annual cost of US$ 2.1 billion with outpatient procedures and hospitalizations. Ten percent of this cost was exclusively spent to treat obesity. The aim of this study was to compare the costs of medical and surgical treatment of severe obesity at centers of excellence for the treatment of obesity funded by the Brazilian Unified Health System. We also intended to estimate the direct and indirect costs. Methods: We conducted an observational, population-based, multicenter study estimating the costs and loss of productivity during 12 months related to obese patients treated at public centers of excellence for obesity. Results: Our sample included 274 patients, 140 patients were allocated to the surgical group and 134 patients were in medical group, with a female predominance in both groups. The surgical group had a higher morbidity rate than the medical group. The surgical group had a lower direct cost (Int$ 1,671.38 vs. Int$ 1,763.71). Three years after the surgery, the indirect cost of medical treatment was higher than the surgical treatment. Conclusion: This study showed that the total costs were higher in the surgical group in the first 2 years after surgery; however, from the third year on there was a significant decrease in costs, reaching lower costs than the medical group. Around 80% of the population studied in the female gender, which reflects a worldwide reality of gender distribution. Indirect costs, which reflect obesity impacts on the labor market, accounted for around 20% of total costs.