Gastroparesis-related hospitalizations in the United States: trends, characteristics, and outcomes, 1995-2004.

Objectives: Gastroparesis is an increasingly recognized disorder. Its prevalence in the United States is unknown. We examined the trends, characteristics, and outcomes of gastroparesis-related hospitalizations during 1995-2004.

Methods: The publicly available Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP) Nationwide Inpatient Sample (NIS) comprises a nationally representative sample of 5-8 million hospitalizations per year. Gastroparesis-related hospitalizations were identified using the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-9) code 536.3 and compared with other hospitalizations. Multivariate regressions were used to compare for differences in the outcomes including length of stay, total charges, and in-hospital deaths.

Results: Hospitalizations with gastroparesis as the primary diagnosis increased from 3,977 in 1995 to 10,252 in 2004 (+158%) and hospitalizations with gastroparesis as the secondary diagnosis increased from 56,726 to 134,146 (+136%). These compared to smaller changes in diabetes-related hospitalizations (+53%), all hospitalizations (+13%), and hospitalizations with gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), gastric ulcer, gastritis, or nonspecific nausea/vomiting as the primary diagnosis (-3% to +76%). Of the five upper gastrointestinal conditions studied as the primary diagnosis, gastroparesis had the longest length of stay (+15.4% to +66.2%, all P < 0.001) and the highest or second highest total charges (-7.2% to +60.6%, all P < 0.01) in 2004, with similar results in 1995.

Conclusions: The number of gastroparesis-related hospitalizations has been increasing in the United States, suggesting an increasing prevalence of gastroparesis. The economic impact of gastroparesis-related hospitalizations is significant and increasing.