Societal economic burden and determinants of costs for atopic dermatitisShow others and affiliations
2022 (English)In: JEADV Clinical Practice, E-ISSN 2768-6566, Vol. 1, no 4, p. 326-343Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]
Background: Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a common inflammatory skin disease while the economic burden of AD by severity is not adequately understood.
Objective: To estimate the societal economic burden and to identify cost determinants of AD.
Methods: In this population‐based, controlled cohort study in Sweden, patients with AD were identified through diagnosis codes in primary or secondary care or by dispensed medications using administrative healthcare registers. A reference cohort without AD was randomly selected from the general population. Healthcare costs (primary/secondary care visits and dispensed medication) and indirect costs (care for sick children and long‐termsick leave for adults) were calculated annually. AD patients were stratified by age (paediatric [age < 12], adolescent [12≤age < 18] or adult [age≥18]), and severity (mild‐to‐moderate [M2M] or severe AD) and matched to the reference cohort.
Results: Compared with controls, the annual mean per‐patient direct healthcare costs in the first year following diagnosis were €941 and €1259 higher in paediatric patients with M2M and severe AD, respectively. In the first year following diagnosis, the mean indirect cost for care of sick children was €69 and €78 higher per patient in M2M and severe AD, respectively. In adolescents with M2M and severe AD, direct healthcare costs were €816 and €1260 higher, respectively. In adults, healthcare costs were €1583 and €2963 higher in patients with M2M and severe AD, respectively and indirect costs were €148 and €263 higher compared with controls. Management of comorbid medical conditions was an important driver of incremental healthcare costs.Total incremental societal economic burden for AD was €351 and €96 million higher in patients with M2M and severe AD, respectively, compared to controls.
Conclusion: AD is associated with a significant societal economic burden primarily driven by the cost burden of M2M AD due to the high prevalence of this population. Regardless of severity level, management of non‐ADcomorbidities is a major driver of total costs.
Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Wiley-Blackwell Publishing Inc., 2022. Vol. 1, no 4, p. 326-343
Keywords [en]
Atopic dermatitis, economic burden, eczema, epidemiology, healthcare costs, indirect costs, public health research
National Category
Dermatology and Venereal Diseases
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:oru:diva-102842DOI: 10.1002/jvc2.74ISI: 001332696900013Scopus ID: 2-s2.0-85181477543OAI: oai:DiVA.org:oru-102842DiVA, id: diva2:1721491
2022-12-212022-12-212025-01-20Bibliographically approved