Table 8

Annual cost of National Health Service (NHS) resource use attributable to managing 3.8 million patients with a wound (£ million at 2017/2018 prices).

AbscessBurnDiabetic foot ulcerLeg ulcer (arterial)Leg ulcer (mixed)Leg ulcer (unspecified)Leg ulcer (venous)Open woundPressure ulcerSurgical woundTraumaUnspecifiedTotal
District/community nurse visits£48.12£95.58£469.94£40.29£198.51£274.19£785.66£35.88£260.52£125.61£10.57£103.74£2448.61(29%)
GP office visits£46.78£28.29£180.31£8.58£86.81£81.60£729.28£36.79£88.50£72.74£21.65£105.38£1486.71(18%)
Healthcare assistant visits£28.90£33.38£276.69£26.52£121.45£180.62£458.11£20.91£99.84£79.23£6.19£63.00£1394.84(17%)
Hospital admissions without surgery£30.25£22.51£24.91£0.00£11.06£61.67£201.92£42.82£33.86£76.53£29.36£99.31£634.20(8%)
Hospital outpatient visits with a nurse£16.65£16.66£56.65£1.99£68.90£18.47£356.69£4.26£0.00£27.86£1.77£58.28£628.18(8%)
Practice nurse visits£15.65£10.18£71.99£3.94£40.71£26.86£303.68£11.45£23.71£25.56£6.10£49.49£589.32(7%)
Wound care products£10.81£12.65£92.48£5.80£38.14£39.24£225.10£10.68£19.05£33.57£5.50£38.36£531.38(6%)
Prescribed medication£12.90£3.68£45.55£3.74£22.67£27.76£84.36£10.00£27.09£14.30£2.79£20.90£275.74(3%)
Hospital admissions with surgery£9.67£13.38£20.69£0.00£0.00£0.00£0.00£0.00£0.00£73.12£7.33£0.00£124.19(1%)
Accident and emergency attendances£9.16£7.44£24.15£1.64£7.65£3.05£39.89£4.87£6.46£9.28£2.12£5.74£121.45(1%)
Hospital outpatient visits with a physician/surgeon£2.44£0.00£8.23£0.91£1.36£3.80£5.53£1.91£5.37£5.35£2.43£0.72£38.05(<1%)
GP home visits£0.69£0.87£1.80£0.00£2.07£0.00£7.56£0.65£4.90£1.36£0.23£2.94£23.07(<1%)
Ambulance services£0.35£0.00£1.49£0.00£0.52£0.00£6.27£0.00£0.00£0.71£0.00£0.81£10.15(<1%)
Podiatrist visits£0.31£0.00£1.34£1.85£2.31£0.00£0.00£0.12£1.82£0.25£0.04£0.00£8.04(<1%)
Day cases£0.84£0.00£0.00£0.00£0.00£0.00£0.00£0.00£0.00£1.37£0.00£0.66£2.87(<1%)
Specialist nurse visits*£0.00£0.00£1.11£0.00£0.66£0.00£0.00£0.00£0.86£0.06£0.00£0.24£2.93(<1%)
Diagnostic tests£0.00£0.01£0.03£0.00£0.06£0.09£0.00£0.01£0.00£0.03£0.01£0.04£0.28(<1%)
Total cost£233.52£244.63£1277.36£95.26£602.88£717.35£3204.05£180.35£571.98£546.93£96.09£549.61£8320.01(100%)
95% confidence intervals around the total cost†£233.17 to £241.31£233.97 to £253.68£1250.56 to £1292.10£86.78 to £97.85£563.53 to £594.45£704.66 to
£740.45
£2973.68; to £3261.84£175.64 to
£182.46
£501.67 to
£577.57
£540.69 to
£555.76
£93.10 to
£97.87
£539.47 to
£571.17
£7,896.93 to
£8466.51
  • Percentage of total cost in parentheses.

  • *Includes tissue viability nurses and diabetic nurse specialists.

  • †Based on 100 bootstrapped samples.

  • GP, general practitioner.