题目选项分析

Which of the following most logically completes the passage?

It is generally believed that people receiving frequent medical checkups are likely to need hospitalization less frequently than they would otherwise; after all, many things can be done following a checkup to prevent problems that, if ignored, might become acute and then require hospitalization. But for people with chronic illnesses, frequent medical checkups are likely to lead to more frequent hospitalization since __________.

【选项】the average length of a hospital stay for people with a chronic illness tends to increase as the illness progresses