
Health Dictionary
Reliable, easy-to-read patient information on common medical conditions — written in plain language, free of jargon, and grounded in current evidence. Browse the most frequent diagnoses, understand what they mean for everyday life, and learn which steps and questions help you have a focused conversation with your doctor.
Cellulitis cost-effectiveness of therapy
Introduction
The use of prophylactic antibiotic therapy to prevent the recurrence of cellulitis was shown to be cost-effective. Low dose penicillin serves to prevent future attacks and offers no significant increase in cost. [1]
A study done in a pediatric population comparing intravenous antibiotic treatment at home versus in the hospital setting showed the former as the more effective and less costly option. [2] [3]
With regard to diagnostic modalities, blood cultures have been shown to be of low yield, with minimal impact on clinical management, thereby not cost-effective for most patients. [4]
References
- ↑ Perl B, Gottehrer NP, Raveh D, Schlesinger Y, Rudensky B, Yinnon AM (1999). “Cost-effectiveness of blood cultures for adult patients with cellulitis”. Clin Infect Dis. 29 (6): 1483–8. doi:10.1086/313525. PMID 10585800.
- ↑ Oppong R, Kodabuckus S (2019). “Cost-effectiveness of outpatient parenteral antibiotic therapy for children with cellulitis”. Lancet Infect Dis. 19 (10): 1041–1042. doi:10.1016/S1473-3099(19)30413-X. PMID 31420293.
- ↑ Ibrahim LF, Huang L, Hopper SM, Dalziel K, Babl FE, Bryant PA (2019). “Intravenous ceftriaxone at home versus intravenous flucloxacillin in hospital for children with cellulitis: a cost-effectiveness analysis”. Lancet Infect Dis. 19 (10): 1101–1108. doi:10.1016/S1473-3099(19)30288-9. PMID 31420292.
- ↑ Mason JM, Thomas KS, Crook AM, Foster KA, Chalmers JR, Nunn AJ; et al. (2014). “Prophylactic antibiotics to prevent cellulitis of the leg: economic analysis of the PATCH I & II trials”. PLoS One. 9 (2): e82694. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0082694. PMC 3925077. PMID 24551029.
