The impact of enteric fistulas on US hospital systems.

Background: There is limited characterization of patients with enteric fistula. Our objective is to determine the incidence of the disease, and characterize demographics, healthcare costs, co-diagnoses, and procedures in this population.

Methods: The National Inpatient Sample database 2004-2014 was queried to identify patients with enteric fistula using ICD-9 code 569.81.

Results: There were 317,000 admissions with a diagnosis of enteric fistula from 2004 to 2014, accounting for 230,000 hospital days annually. Costs totaled $500 million with charges of $1.5 billion annually. Inpatient mortality is 4.1%. Patients had significant comorbidities and 3 procedures or surgical interventions per admission.

Conclusions: This descriptive study elucidates the impact of enteric fistula on patients and hospitals by characterizing incidence, clinical associations, and admission characteristics. There is significant financial impact with 28,000 admissions and $500 million dollars in annual costs. This study lays the groundwork for future research by characterizing the impact of enteric fistula.