WoundData entering in patient.

BackgroundWound dressing is an integral part of wound care protocol. However, the cost of dressing changes with the associated wound aetiology has not been well studied. The study investigates the cost implications of wound dressing across wound aetiology among hospitalized patients.MethodsThe study followed a descriptive cross-sectional research design to determine the cost of dressing changes and the associated wound aetiology among hospitalized patients. Study sites included medical-surgical units in three selected hospitals in southwest Nigeria. The study was conducted between May to July 2021. One hundred and ninety patients were recruited for the study. The eligibility criteria focused on patients hospitalized for at least four weeks or about to be discharged. Data collection was via a researcher-administered questionnaire. Ethical approval was received from the university and each of the hospitals.ResultsThe finding shows that 34.2% of the respondents had road traffic accidents, followed by cancers, 22.6%, and surgical wound infections, 16.8%. Most patients were involved in daily (41.6%) or alternate-day (38.4%) wound dressing. Over 50% of the respondents earn less than US$30 per month, 34.7% earn between US$30 – US$60, while only 3.2% earn more than US$ 120. Also, 55.7% require 1–5 moderate or significant dressing packs per week. 75% had wound care paid for by relatives. The average burn injuries cost of wound dressing per week is estimated to be $8.42, while falls ($5.31), occupational injuries ($3.77), gunshot injuries ($3.74), and road traffic accidents ($3.49). The average cost of hospitalization for burn injuries per week was estimated to be $22.35, while for falls, road traffic accidents, and surgical wound infections, was $19.58, $19.32, and $18.37, respectively.ConclusionsThe cost requirements for prosperous wound dressing place a high financial burden on hospitalized patients in Nigeria. There is a need to scale Nigeria’s health insurance database to include the low socioeconomic class.

背景：伤口敷料（wound dressing）是伤口护理方案中不可或缺的组成部分。然而，针对伤口换药成本及其相关伤口病因（wound aetiology）的研究仍相对匮乏。本研究旨在探讨住院患者不同伤口病因下的伤口换药成本影响。
方法：本研究采用描述性横断面研究设计（cross-sectional research design），以明确住院患者的伤口换药成本及其相关伤口病因。研究地点选取尼日利亚西南部三家医院的内外科病房（medical-surgical units），研究周期为2021年5月至7月。本研究共纳入190名患者，纳入标准为住院时长至少4周或即将出院的患者。数据收集采用研究者自制调查问卷完成。本研究已获得所在大学及各参与医院的伦理审查批准（ethical approval）。
结果：研究结果显示，34.2%的受访者为道路交通事故致伤，其次为癌症患者（22.6%）与手术部位切口感染患者（16.8%）。多数患者需每日（41.6%）或隔日（38.4%）进行伤口换药。超过50%的受访者月收入低于30美元，34.7%的受访者月收入介于30美元至60美元之间，仅3.2%的受访者月收入超过120美元。此外，55.7%的患者每周需要1至5份中重度换药包。75%的患者伤口护理费用由亲属承担。烧伤患者的周均伤口换药成本约为8.42美元，其余依次为跌倒致伤（5.31美元）、职业性损伤（3.77美元）、枪击伤（3.74美元）与道路交通事故致伤（3.49美元）。烧伤患者的周均住院成本约为22.35美元，跌倒致伤、道路交通事故致伤与手术部位切口感染患者的周均住院成本分别为19.58美元、19.32美元与18.37美元。
结论：高昂的伤口换药成本给尼日利亚住院患者带来了沉重的经济负担。尼日利亚亟需扩大健康保险数据库的覆盖范围，将社会经济阶层（socioeconomic class）较低的群体纳入保障体系。