A recent study published in PLOS Global Public Health examines the economic burden of scabies and related skin infections in Fiji. The article, titled “Costs of primary healthcare presentations and hospital admissions for scabies and related skin infections in Fiji, 2018–2019”, highlights the significant healthcare costs associated with these infections in the Northern Division of Fiji. Scabies and bacterial skin and soft tissue infections (SSTIs) are highly prevalent in tropical, low- and middle-income countries and contribute substantially to the strain on healthcare systems.
Through the Big Skin Health Intervention Fiji Trial (Big SHIFT), the authors estimated the annual direct healthcare costs of treating scabies and SSTIs, calculating a total cost of approximately US$3.0 million, with scabies-related healthcare visits averaging $17.7 per primary healthcare presentation and $439 per hospital admission. The findings suggest that effective prevention strategies could reduce these healthcare costs, alleviating the burden on Fiji’s healthcare system.