Abstract
BackgroundMultiple sclerosis (MS) causes work disability and healthcare resource use, but little is known about the distribution of the associated costs to society.ObjectivesWe estimated the cost of illness (COI) of working-aged individuals with MS, from the societal perspective, overall and in different groups.MethodsA population-based study was conducted, using data linked from several nationwide registers, on 14,077 individuals with MS, aged 20–64 years and living in Sweden. Prevalence-based direct and indirect costs in 2010 were calculated, including costs for prescription drug use, specialized healthcare, sick leave, and disability pension.ResultsThe estimated COI of all the MS patients were SEK 3950 million, of which 75% were indirect costs. MS was the main diagnosis for resource use, causing 38% of healthcare costs and 67% of indirect costs. The distribution of costs was skewed, in which less than 25% of the patients accounted for half the total COI.ConclusionsIndirect costs contributed to approximately 75% of the estimated overall COI of MS patients of working age in Sweden. MS was the main diagnosis for more than half of the estimated COI in this patient group. Further studies are needed to gain knowledge on development of costs over time during the MS disease course.
Highlights
Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a neurological, often progressive disease and the most common degenerative neurological disease in people of working age [1]
We estimated the cost of illness (COI) of working-aged individuals with MS, from the societal perspective, overall and in different groups
MS was the main diagnosis for resource use, causing 38% of healthcare costs and 67% of indirect costs
Summary
Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a neurological, often progressive disease and the most common degenerative neurological disease in people of working age [1]. Most individuals are diagnosed when aged 20–40 years [2] and the disease often results in different types of disability that impact work participation and cause sickness absence and disability pension. MS leads to both work disability and healthcare resource use. Little is known about the representativeness of the estimated impact from those studies for all individuals with MS (hereafter called MS patients) in a country [4]. Multiple sclerosis (MS) causes work disability and healthcare resource use, but little is known about the distribution of the associated costs to society
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