Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of Adding Telerehabilitation to Standard Care for Ankle Sprains Compared with Standard Care Alone

Background: Ankle sprain (AS) is a common musculoskeletal injury. While telerehabilitation is an effective treatment for various musculoskeletal conditions, evidence on its cost-effectiveness for AS is lacking. Methods: A cost-effectiveness study was conducted through a 4-week randomized controlled...

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Main Authors: Juan Figueroa-García, Víctor Marcial Granados-García, Juan Carlos H. Hernández-Rivera, David Rojano-Mejía
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Mary Ann Liebert 2025-01-01
Series:Telemedicine Reports
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Online Access:https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/10.1089/tmr.2025.0010
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author Juan Figueroa-García
Víctor Marcial Granados-García
Juan Carlos H. Hernández-Rivera
David Rojano-Mejía
author_facet Juan Figueroa-García
Víctor Marcial Granados-García
Juan Carlos H. Hernández-Rivera
David Rojano-Mejía
author_sort Juan Figueroa-García
collection DOAJ
description Background: Ankle sprain (AS) is a common musculoskeletal injury. While telerehabilitation is an effective treatment for various musculoskeletal conditions, evidence on its cost-effectiveness for AS is lacking. Methods: A cost-effectiveness study was conducted through a 4-week randomized controlled trial in individuals with AS. The control group (n = 41) received standard care, while the intervention group (n = 41) received standard care plus asynchronous telerehabilitation. Effectiveness was measured using the Foot and Ankle Ability Measure (FAAM) with subscales for daily living (FAAM-ADL) and sports activities (FAAM-sports). The economic evaluation used the Mexican health system’s official price list, including work incapacity costs, updated to 2024 (U.S. dollars). A one-way sensitivity analysis was also performed. Results: At 4 weeks, the intervention group showed a gain of 78 points in functionality for FAAM-ADL and 80.2 points for FAAM-sports, while the control group scored 69.1 and 61.6, respectively. When the costs of work incapacity were considered, the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) of adding telerehabilitation per point gained in FAAM-ADL functionality was US$ −14.4 and US$ −8.5 for FAAM-sports. When work incapacity costs were excluded, the ICER was US$ −0.7 and US$ −0.4, respectively. Conclusions: Adding telerehabilitation to standard care for AS was cost-saving, achieving greater effectiveness at a lower cost. This is more evident when direct costs are considered together with the costs of work incapacity.
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spelling doaj-art-9fa184aa02834dc9a897f8cfe70d1ead2025-08-20T02:31:31ZengMary Ann LiebertTelemedicine Reports2692-43662025-01-016112012710.1089/tmr.2025.0010Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of Adding Telerehabilitation to Standard Care for Ankle Sprains Compared with Standard Care AloneJuan Figueroa-García0Víctor Marcial Granados-García1Juan Carlos H. Hernández-Rivera2David Rojano-Mejía3Unidad de Medicina Familiar N. 26, Órgano de Operación Administrativa Desconcentrada de la Ciudad de México Sur, Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social, Ciudad de México, México.Unidad de Investigación Epidemiológica y en Servicios de Salud, Área Envejecimiento, Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social, Ciudad de México, México.Unidad de Investigación Médica en Enfermedades Nefrológicas, Hospital de Especialidades, Centro Médico Nacional Siglo XXI, Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social, Ciudad de México, México.Coordinación de Investigación en Salud, Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social, Ciudad de México, México.Background: Ankle sprain (AS) is a common musculoskeletal injury. While telerehabilitation is an effective treatment for various musculoskeletal conditions, evidence on its cost-effectiveness for AS is lacking. Methods: A cost-effectiveness study was conducted through a 4-week randomized controlled trial in individuals with AS. The control group (n = 41) received standard care, while the intervention group (n = 41) received standard care plus asynchronous telerehabilitation. Effectiveness was measured using the Foot and Ankle Ability Measure (FAAM) with subscales for daily living (FAAM-ADL) and sports activities (FAAM-sports). The economic evaluation used the Mexican health system’s official price list, including work incapacity costs, updated to 2024 (U.S. dollars). A one-way sensitivity analysis was also performed. Results: At 4 weeks, the intervention group showed a gain of 78 points in functionality for FAAM-ADL and 80.2 points for FAAM-sports, while the control group scored 69.1 and 61.6, respectively. When the costs of work incapacity were considered, the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) of adding telerehabilitation per point gained in FAAM-ADL functionality was US$ −14.4 and US$ −8.5 for FAAM-sports. When work incapacity costs were excluded, the ICER was US$ −0.7 and US$ −0.4, respectively. Conclusions: Adding telerehabilitation to standard care for AS was cost-saving, achieving greater effectiveness at a lower cost. This is more evident when direct costs are considered together with the costs of work incapacity.https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/10.1089/tmr.2025.0010cost-effectivenesstelerehabilitationtelehealthankle sprainrehabilitationclinical trial
spellingShingle Juan Figueroa-García
Víctor Marcial Granados-García
Juan Carlos H. Hernández-Rivera
David Rojano-Mejía
Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of Adding Telerehabilitation to Standard Care for Ankle Sprains Compared with Standard Care Alone
Telemedicine Reports
cost-effectiveness
telerehabilitation
telehealth
ankle sprain
rehabilitation
clinical trial
title Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of Adding Telerehabilitation to Standard Care for Ankle Sprains Compared with Standard Care Alone
title_full Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of Adding Telerehabilitation to Standard Care for Ankle Sprains Compared with Standard Care Alone
title_fullStr Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of Adding Telerehabilitation to Standard Care for Ankle Sprains Compared with Standard Care Alone
title_full_unstemmed Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of Adding Telerehabilitation to Standard Care for Ankle Sprains Compared with Standard Care Alone
title_short Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of Adding Telerehabilitation to Standard Care for Ankle Sprains Compared with Standard Care Alone
title_sort cost effectiveness analysis of adding telerehabilitation to standard care for ankle sprains compared with standard care alone
topic cost-effectiveness
telerehabilitation
telehealth
ankle sprain
rehabilitation
clinical trial
url https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/10.1089/tmr.2025.0010
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