OBJECTIVES : The aim of this study was to estimate the direct cost per episode and the annual cost for URTI in children in Ambulatory Health Centers of the Ministry of Public Health (MPH) of Ecuador.

METHODS : This is a cost of illness study of medical costs with a provider perspective and a micro-costing approach. This includes medical care, tests, diagnosis and medication as principal resources. The International Classification of Disease (ICD) – 10 was used for selection of the diagnosis criteria for URTI. The data source for the resources use and data collection included in this study were the Electronic Health Records (EHR) of all the patients from one Health Center of the Ministry of Public Health in Ecuador

RESULTS : We included 380 electronic health records of children 1 – 18 years old. We found a re-consultation rate of 22,89%, a medicine prescription rate of 95.52% and an antibiotic prescription rate of 45,26%. Complementary use of laboratory tests and imaging were low. The first medical consultation accounted for 71,9% of the total cost of URTI, the following visits accounted for 11.82% and medication accounted for 14,68%. Antibiotics accounted for 58,92% of the total cost of medication.

CONCLUSIONS : The direct medical cost to the MPH of Ecuador of one episode of URTI in children in primary care was around $19.5 (95% CI: $18.73, $20.27) and the total cost of URTI cases in children to the MPH in 2017 accounted for $ 26.4 m (95% CI: $25.380 m to $27.47 m). Re-consultation and the prescription of medication represent an important part of the direct cost of medical care of URTI.