Pulmonary Hypertension with Lung Disease and/or Hypoxia (PH-LD) and PH with interstitial lung disease (PH-ILD) are life-threatening diseases with a high burden. We aimed to estimate the clinical and economic burden of PH-LD and PH-ILD sub-group using French hospital claims data (PMSI).

This retrospective cohort study was conducted between 2015-21. Incident PH-LD and PH-ILD patients with a minimum of 3-month follow-up were selected. All hospital visits (inpatient or outpatient) were analyzed during follow-up. The economic burden was evaluated from a healthcare system perspective, based on direct costs related to hospital admissions, specialist visits, expensive drugs, and medical devices.

A total of 1,186 PH-LD and 504 PH-ILD patients were included with a mean (standard deviation, SD) follow-up of 26 (15) and 27 (15) months, respectively. For PH-D the mean (SD) all-cause, PH- and LD-hospitalizations/patient/year for were 5.5 (4.5), 1.5 (1.4), and 1.1 (1.9) respectively, for PH-ILD was 5.8 (4.5), 1.6 (1.4) and 1.6 (2.3). The mean yearly total costs per PH-LD and PH-ILD patient were ?16,759 (23,938) and ?18,443 (31,195), respectively. For PH-LD the yearly costs associated with PH and LD were ?4,140 (6,543) and ?4,213 (11,405), respectively, whereas for PH-ILD ?4,195 (6,248) and ?5,011 (13,873).

While this study does not capture the direct and indirect costs incurred outside the hospital, it demonstrates that PH-LD is associated with a significant economic burden for the healthcare system.