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Cost of illness of atopic asthma and seasonal allergic rhinitis in Germany: 1-yr retrospective study

¹ MERG Medical Economics Research Group, Munich, ² Health Economics, Novartis Pharma, Nuremberg and ³ Institute and Outpatient Clinic for Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany

CORRESPONDENCE: B. Schramm, Medical Economics Research Group, Paul-Gerhardt-Allee 42, D-81245, München, Germany. Fax: 49 8945791234. E-mail: Barbara.Schramm@merg-munich.de

Keywords: atopic asthma, cost of illness, direct costs, indirect costs, rhinitis, severity of disease

Received: March 8, 2002
Accepted August 19, 2002

This study was sponsored by an unrestricted grant from Novartis Pharma GmbH, Nuremberg, Germany.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the cost of illness of moderate-to-severe atopic asthma and/or seasonal allergic rhinitis (SAR) in Germany from the perspective of third-party payers (TPP) and patients.

Five-hundred patients (276 children/adolescents) with moderate-to-severe asthma and/or SAR were included in this cross-sectional study. Information was collected using a specific patient questionnaire and the abstraction of patient records.

Overall, annual costs per patient increased with the severity of atopic asthma and if it was associated with SAR. The average annual cost of SAR was 1,089 per child/adolescent and 1,543 per adult. Annual costs of severe asthma plus SAR increased to 7,928 per child/adolescent and to 9,287 per adult. For TPPs, the main cost drivers were medication, hospitalisation, and rehabilitation. The most significant costs for patients were household modifications. For children/adolescents, 60–78% of the expenditures were direct costs, while in adults, 58% of expenditures were indirect costs. It was also observed that patients with moderate and severe asthma used inhaled corticosteroids less frequently than recommended by treatment guidelines.

In summary, the total cost for patients increases with the severity of atopic asthma and/or seasonal allergic rhinitis and indirect costs represent a large proportion of the total cost.

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