Micro cost-effectiveness analysis of standard vs. mini percutaneous nephrolithotomy
Bibliographic record
Abstract
INTRODUCTION: Mini-percutaneous nephrolithotomy (mPCNL ) has been described as an alternative to standard nephrolithotomy (sPCNL ) for select stones. Studies suggest that mPCNL has comparable stone-free rates, with potential for decreased complications and shorter hospital stay. Costs associated with both procedures present a challenge to Canadian institutions due to capital acquisitions of equipment and ongoing disposables. The objective of this study was to compare the cost-effectiveness of both procedures at our institution. METHODS: A decision tree analytic model was developed to compare costs and outcomes of both procedures. Primary outcomes included assessment of total capital, operative, and hospitalization costs. Cost and outcome of peri- and postoperative parameters were obtained using a retrospective analysis of 20 mPCNL and 84 sPCNL procedures on 1-2.5 cm stones between January 2020 and June 2022, and supplemented with internal hospital expenditure records and literature outcome data. Descriptive statistics and regression models were performed. RESULTS: The estimated total cost-per-patient was $7427.05 and $5036.29 for sPCNL and mPCNL, respectively, resulting in cost-savings of $2390.76 in favor of mPCNL, with a comparable stone-free rate. The savings were due to lower costs associated with complications and hospital stay. mPCNL had higher capital costs ($95 116.00) compared to sPCNL ($78 517.00), but per-procedure operative costs were lower for mPCNL ($2504.48) compared to sPCNL ($3335.72). Cost-per-case regression of total costs intersected at 5.51 cases when accounting for operative and hospitalization costs, and at 20 cases when only considering operative costs. CONCLUSIONS: Despite higher upfront costs, mCPNL may represent a valid, cost-effective alternative to sPCNL for select stones due to clinical and economic benefits in Canadian institutions.
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How this classification was reachedexpand
Full frame machine prediction
Teacher imitationNot calibrated prevalence, not ground truth. Human validation pending. The Gemma side is a direct model label for every work in the frame, read from the title-only record. The Codex side is a classifier learned from the 10,348 direct Codex labels and calibrated to design-weighted sample rates; fields without enough sample support carry no Codex call. Candidate is the union of the two sides; consensus is their intersection. These outputs are machine_predicted_unvalidated and are not human labels.
Distilled classifier scores by category (both heads)
| Category | Codex | Gemma |
|---|---|---|
| Metaresearch | 0.006 | 0.014 |
| Meta-epidemiology (narrow) | 0.001 | 0.000 |
| Meta-epidemiology (broad) | 0.001 | 0.003 |
| Bibliometrics | 0.002 | 0.001 |
| Science and technology studies | 0.000 | 0.000 |
| Scholarly communication | 0.001 | 0.001 |
| Open science | 0.001 | 0.001 |
| Research integrity | 0.001 | 0.001 |
| Insufficient payload (model declined to judge) | 0.006 | 0.000 |
Machine scores (provisional)
The two teacher heads of the student model, read on this work. A score orders the frame for review; it never asserts a category, and the validation status ships verbatim with every row.
Baseline scores from an immature model (maturity gate not passed, 7 training rounds). Scores rank; they never assert a category.
score_only:v0-immature-baseline · verbatim from the scoring run: score_only means the number may rank works, and no category label ships from itClassification
machine, unvalidatedMachine predicted; a candidate call from one source (direct Gemma or distilled Codex), not a consensus.
How this classification was reached, model by model and score by score, is at the end of the page under "How this classification was reached".