Introduction:

Hospitalization for acute diarrheal diseases in children under five years of age can generate significant expenses for the family.

Objective:

To assess the out-of-pocket expense and the indirect cost for the care of patients under five years of age hospitalized for gastroenteritis due to rotavirus.

Methods:

This is cost description study. Microcosting was used to estimate the direct medical cost (service and medication) and non-medical cost (transportation, food, cleaning), as well as the productivity losses for patients and their family and the sources of financing. We worked with 132 patients hospitalized at Cienfuegos Pediatric Hospital from September 2019 to February 2020 with gastroenteritis and a positive rotavirus rapid test. Expenditure was analyzed according to the economic situation referred to and the age of the patient.

Results:

The mean total out-of-pocket expense was CUP 809.66 (95% CI 757.57 - 861.75); 50.8% for food, 31.4% for cleaning and 17.8% for transportation. Households with better economic situation spent more (<0.001). 87.2% of the families used some source of resources in addition to their usual income. 2.39 people were affected (95% CI 2.27 - 2.52) and a loss of 5.51 working days was reported (95% CI 5.21 - 5.8). The average indirect cost was CUP 418.8 (95% CI 382.36 - 455.24).

Conclusions:

The hospitalization of a child under five years of age for acute gastroenteritis due to rotavirus in Cienfuegos represents a considerable economic burden for families, especially for those with better economic situation.