Overall Cost of Medical Care Compared to Physical Therapy for People with Sickle Cell Disease

Objective: People with Sickle Cell Disease require extensive medical care throughout their life in the acute care and outpatient settings. Physical therapy is a known service that has demonstrated a positive impact on improving quality of life in this specific patient population. However, the cost of physical therapy as compared to the overall cost of medical care for people with SickleCell Disease has yet to be comprehensively explored. Design: A retrospective analysis of medical records for people with Sickle Cell Disease was performed and descriptive statistics were used to evaluate the cost associated with physical therapy. Results: We identified 30,569 episodes of care. Of the 30,569 episodes of care, 413 included physical therapy. Of the 413 episodes, the difference between total charges and physical therapy charges was an average of $44,887.00; thus, physical therapy made up only 3.2% of total medical costs. Conclusion: Our study identified physical therapy services are minimally utilized for people with Sickle Cell Disease. As physical therapy is known to provide positive benefits and cost is low compared to overall medical expenses; we suggest further study is warranted to explore if physical therapy can help lower medical acute care length of stay and reduce readmissions. What is known: It is known that physical therapy provides positive benefits, across body systems, for people with Sickle Cell Disease. What is new: Physical therapy is being underutilized, despite being cost-effective, for people with Sickle Cell Disease.