Economic Burden of Viral Acute Respiratory Infections in Upper-Middle-Income Countries: Protocol For A Systematic Review

Objective To synthesize the available data on the economic burden of Coronavirus Diseases 2019 (COVID-19), Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS), Influenza-Like Illness (ILI), Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV)-related Acute Respiratory Infection (ARI), and Parainfluenza Virus type III (PIV3)-related ARI in Upper-Middle-Income Countries (UMIC), highlighting its major causes and comparing direct costs among nations. Study design Systematic review, following the recommendations proposed in the Cochrane Handbook, but with some adaptations from previous economic studies. Review question Is there any economic cost of viral ARI in UMIC? Types of studies to be included Partial economic evaluation, such as Cost-of-Illness (COI) studies and burden of illness/diseases, database analysis, observational reports (cross-sectional studies, and prospective and retrospective cohort), and economic modelling studies that discuss one of the viral ARI in UMIC. No year of publication filter or language limit will be applied. Search databases MEDLINE, EMBASE, LILACS, CINAHL, EconLit, CRD Library, MedRxiv, and Research Square. Moreover, hand searches of the bibliographies of included studies and relevant reviews identified during the screening process will be undertaken to identify any additional relevant study for inclusion in our review. Synthesis of results Qualitative analysis. We will focus on the overall economic burden of the diseases on health systems and population; total direct cost; the contribution of different cost components to the economic burden (e.g. pharmacological therapy, hospitalization); comparative assessments of costs analysis across geographical location and time horizon; and current research gaps. Moreover, we intend to identify, when presented, prevalence and incidence rates of each disease. PROSPERO registration number CRD42020225757. ### Competing Interest Statement The authors have declared no competing interest. ### Clinical Protocols ### Funding Statement This study has the support of the Coordenacao de Aperfeicoamento de Pessoal de Nivel Superior, Brasil (CAPES). ### Author Declarations I confirm all relevant ethical guidelines have been followed, and any necessary IRB and/or ethics committee approvals have been obtained. Yes The details of the IRB/oversight body that provided approval or exemption for the research described are given below: Not applicable All necessary patient/participant consent has been obtained and the appropriate institutional forms have been archived. Yes I understand that all clinical trials and any other prospective interventional studies must be registered with an ICMJE-approved registry, such as ClinicalTrials.gov. I confirm that any such study reported in the manuscript has been registered and the trial registration ID is provided (note: if posting a prospective study registered retrospectively, please provide a statement in the trial ID field explaining why the study was not registered in advance). Yes I have followed all appropriate research reporting guidelines and uploaded the relevant EQUATOR Network research reporting checklist(s) and other pertinent material as supplementary files, if applicable. Yes All data referred to in the manuscript are available.