Alan F. Cruess (Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada) Gergana Zlateva (Pfizer Ophthalmics, New York, New York, USA) Xiao Xu (Covance Market Access Services Inc., Gaithersburg, Maryland, USA) Gisele Soubrane (Department of Ophthalmology, University Paris XII, Centre Hospitalier Intercommunal de Creteil, Creteil, France) Daniel Pauleikhoff (Augenarztpraxis des St Franziskus-Hospital, Munster, Germany) Andrew Lotery (Southhampton Eye Unit, University of Southampton, Southampton, England) Jordi Mones (Centro Medico Teknon, Instituto de Microcirugia Ocular de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain) Ronald Buggage (Pfizer Ophthalmics, New York, New York, USA) Caroline Schaefer (Covance Market Access Services Inc., Gaithersburg, Maryland, USA) Tyler Knight (Covance Market Access Services Inc., Gaithersburg, Maryland, USA) Thomas F. Goss (Covance Market Access Services Inc., Gaithersburg, Maryland, USA)
Abstract
Background: There is limited previous research examining the healthcare costs of neovascular age-related macular degeneration (NV-AMD), which constrains our understanding of the economic impact of this condition. With aging populations, this leading cause of rapid vision loss in Western countries is expected to become a pressing health predicament, requiring decision makers to evaluate alternative treatment strategies for AMD. Objective: To document the economic burden of bilateral NV-AMD, the late stage of AMD, in elderly patients, from a societal perspective. Study design, setting and participants: A cross-sectional, observational study surveyed 401 patients with bilateral NV-AMD and 471 non-AMD subjects in Canada, France, Germany, Spain and the UK. Physicians Main outcome measures: Societal costs including direct vision-related medical costs (e.g. treatment of AMD and vision-related equipment), direct non-vision-related medical costs (e.g. medications) and direct non-medical-related costs (e.g. home healthcare and social services) were the main outcome measures. Results: The demographic profile of NV-AMD patients was similar across countries; however, co-morbid condition profiles varied. NV-AMD patients reported substantial health-related problems and associated health resource utilization (HRU). In the previous 12 months, 12-22% of patients fell, and half of these patients required medical treatments. More than 20% (range 21-59%) of patients were prescribed vision-enhancing equipment. More than half of the patients (54-81%) were living with a spouse or family member and 19-41% reported receiving assistance for activities of daily living. The average annual societal cost per bilateral NV-AMD patient treated was estimated to be Conclusions: Bilateral NV-AMD imposes significant functional impairment on patients, leading to increased HRU and a high societal cost burden. Differences in national healthcare systems and NV-AMD treatment patterns were reflected in the wide variation of NV-AMD costs across the five surveyed countries. Even though the prevalence rates and per-patient costs varied by country, the societal costs of NV-AMD patients were substantial in each country. Earlier intervention with effective therapies is expected to reduce disease burden and disability associated with NV-AMD and, thus, decrease the overall societal cost.
Download Info
To download:
If you experience problems downloading a file, check if you have the
proper application to
view it first. Information about this may be contained
in the File-Format links below. In case of further problems read
the IDEAS help
file. Note that these files are not on the IDEAS
site. Please be patient as the files may be large.
As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to look for a different version under "Related research" (further below) or search for a different version of it.
Publisher Info
Article provided by Wolters Kluwer Health | Adis in its journal PharmacoEconomics.
Volume (Year): 26 (2008) Issue (Month): 1 () Pages: 57-73 Download reference. The following formats are available: HTML,
plain text,
BibTeX,
RIS (EndNote),
ReDIF
Find related papers by JEL classification: C - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods D - Microeconomics I - Health, Education, and Welfare Z - Other Special Topics I1 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health I19 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Other I18 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Government Policy; Regulation; Public Health I11 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Analysis of Health Care Markets