Comparison of the Economic Burden Between Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting and Percutaneous Coronary Intervention at a One-Year Follow-up

Cardiovascular disease is one of the leading causes of death and disability in the world. There is limited information about the economic burden of this disease in Iran. This study aimed to compare the economic burden between coronary artery bypass grafting surgery (CABG) and percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) from 2018 through 2019.  The cost of cardiovascular disease was calculated from a sociological perspective based on a top-down approach. The study samples were 379 cardiac patients with venous congestion above 70% who were sampled at Tehran Heart Center by simple random sampling. The cost information was collected in 3 different periods using the hospital information system and interviewing patients.  The direct medical cost of CABG was higher than that of PCI (183 907 460 rials vs 122 508 920 rials). The direct nonmedical cost and the indirect cost of CABG were 15 848 570 rials and 79 420 960 rials, respectively, while these costs were 7 951 900 rials and 26 315 170 rials, respectively, for PCI.  At 1 year’s postoperative follow-up, CABG had a higher cost than PCI for the patients and, thus, the country’s healthcare system. (Iranian Heart Journal 2022; 23(1): 106-111)