scholarly journals Economic burden of multiple sclerosis: a cross-sectional study in Iran

2022 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mehdi Rezaee ◽  
Khosro Keshavarz ◽  
Sadegh Izadi ◽  
Abdosaleh Jafari ◽  
Ramin Ravangard

Abstract Background Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is a chronic debilitating disease that imposes a heavy socioeconomic burden on societies. This study aimed to determine the economic burden of MS on patients using the first (CinnoVex and ReciGen) and second (Fingolimod and Natalizumab) drug therapy lines. Methods This cost of illness study was an economic evaluation carried out as cross-sectional research in 2019 in southern Iran. A total of 259 patients were enrolled in two lines of drug therapy (178 patients in the first line and 81 ones in the second). The prevalence-based approach and the bottom-up approach were used to collect cost information and to calculate the costs from the societal perspective, respectively. The human capital approach was applied to calculate indirect costs. To collect the required data a researcher-made data collection form was utilized. The data were obtained using the information available in the patients’ medical records and insurance invoices as well as their self-reports or that of their companions. Results The results showed that the annual costs of MS in the first and second lines of drug therapy per patient were $ 1919 and $ 4082 purchasing power parity (PPP), respectively, and in total, $ 2721 PPP in 2019. The highest mean costs in both lines were those of direct medical costs, of which purchasing the main medicines in both lines accounted for the highest. Conclusion Considering the findings of this study and in order to reduce the burden of the disease, the following suggestions are presented: providing necessary facilities for the production of MS drugs in the country; proper and equitable distribution of neurologists; expanding the provision of home care services; and using the technologies related to the Internet, including WhatsApp, to follow up the MS patients’ treatment.

Author(s):  
D. K. Dhodi ◽  
S. R. Sinha ◽  
F. Dawer ◽  
M. S. Chavan

Background: The objective of the study was to evaluate the cost of care of depression in terms of direct and indirect costs.Methods: 150 patients diagnosed with depression attending psychiatry OPD at Sir J.J. Group of Hospitals, Mumbai, fulfilling the inclusion criteria were explained about the study. Written informed consent were taken. Direct and Indirect costs were recorded in structured case record forms by interviewing the patients. Cost driving factors were identified.Results: Total annual direct cost were INR 6,378.16 which included drug costs, travel expenses, physician’s consultation, cost of investigations, hospitalisation cost while total Indirect costs were INR 16,860 which included days of work both of the patient and the caretaker.Conclusions: The indirect cost was almost thrice the direct costs. Hospitalisation cost and loss of working days due to depression was contributed the most to the direct costs and indirect costs respectively. Economic burden of depression is found out to be 16.30% of per capita gross domestic product in year 2018-19.


2021 ◽  
Vol In Press (In Press) ◽  
Author(s):  
Hadi Hamidi Parsa ◽  
Abedin Saghafipour ◽  
Alireza Koohpaei ◽  
Babak Farzinnia ◽  
Mohsen Barouni

Background: The novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has placed heavy direct and indirect economic burden on the people and the health system. Objectives: The present study aimed to estimate the economic burden of COVID-19 in Qom Province, using the step-down cost accounting (SDCA) method. Methods: This descriptive, cross-sectional study included all COVID-19 patients in Qom Province from February 19, 2020, to June 19, 2020. The patients’ data were collected in the form of major cost groups with integrated health system (IHS), health information system (HIS), and a financial software called Roozamad. The governmental, out-of-pocket, and opportunity costs paid by patients and hospitals were calculated and evaluated using SDCA in Microsoft Excel software. Results: The incidence of COVID-19 infection was 518 per 100,000 populations in Qom Province in the aforementioned period. The total government costs for the treatment of the patients were calculated to be 2,229,216,930,370 Rials (8,916,867 $). Among the major governmental cost groups, personnel costs accounted for the highest total expenditures. In addition, out-of-pocket costs of patients and their families equaled 30,038,013,060 Rials (120,152 $). The costs of final service departments accounted for more than half of the total costs. The opportunity costs were calculated as 420 billion Rials (15.68% of total costs). Conclusions: According to the findings, the direct and indirect costs associated with the treatment of COVID-19 patients can impose a heavy economic burden on the households and health care system. Therefore, disease prevention strategies such as observing health protocols are recommended to reduce the burden of the disease.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vahid Alipour ◽  
Hamed Zandian ◽  
Vahid Yazdi-Feyzabadi ◽  
Leili Avesta ◽  
Telma Zahirian Moghadam

Abstract Background Different countries have set different policies to control and decrease the costs of Cardiovascular Diseases(CVDs). Iran aiming reducing the economic burden of different disease by a recent reform from named as health transformation plan(HTP). This study aimed to examine economic burden of CVDs before and after of HTP, Methods This cross-sectional study was conducted on 600 patients with CVDs, who were randomly selected from a specialized cardiovascular hospital in the north-west of Iran. Direct and indirect costs of CVDs were calculated using cost of illness and human capital approaches. Data were collected using a researcher-made checklist obtained from several sources including structured interviews, the Statistical Center of Iran, Iran's Ministry of Cooperatives, Labor, and Social Welfare, central bank of the Iran, and the data of global burden of disease obtained from the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation to estimate direct and mortality costs. All costs were calculated in Iranian Rials(IRR). Results Total costs of CVDs were about 5571 and 6700 billion IRR before and after the HTP, respectively. More than 62% of the total costs of CVDs accounted for premature death before (64.89%) and after(62.01%) the HTP. The total hospitalization costs of CVDs was significantly increased after the HTP (p=0.038). In both times, surgical services and visiting had the highest and lowest share of hospitalization costs, respectively. The OOP expenditure decreased significantly and reached from 54.2% to 36.7%. All hospitalization costs, except patients' OOP expenditure, were significantly increased after the HTP about 1.3 times. Direct non-medical costs reached from 2.4 to 3.3 billion before and after the HTP, respectively. Conclusion The economic burden of CVDs after the HTP increased in the north-west of Iran due to the increase of all direct and indirect costs, except the OOP expenditure. Non-allocation of defined resources, which coincided with the international and national political and economic challenges in Iran, led to unsustainable resources of the HTP. So, no results of this study can be attributed solely to the HTP. Therefore, studies that are more detailed should be carried out on the reasons for the significant increase in CVDs costs in the region.


2017 ◽  
Vol 23 (8) ◽  
pp. 1123-1136 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gisela Kobelt ◽  
Alan Thompson ◽  
Jenny Berg ◽  
Mia Gannedahl ◽  
Jennifer Eriksson ◽  
...  

Background: The current focus in multiple sclerosis (MS) is on early diagnosis and drug intervention, with a view to modifying disease progression. Consequently, healthcare costs have shifted from inpatient care and rehabilitation to outpatient care. Objectives: This European burden of illness study provides data that can be combined with other evidence to assess whether management approaches provide value to society. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in 16 countries. Patients reported on their disease, health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and resource consumption. Descriptive analyses were performed by disease severity. Costs are reported from a societal perspective in 2015€ PPP (adjusted for purchasing power parity). Results: The 16,808 participants had a mean age of 51.5 years, and 52% had relapsing–remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS). Work capacity declined from 82% to 8%, and utility declined from normal population values to less than zero with advancing disease. Mean costs were 22,800€ PPP in mild, 37,100€ PPP in moderate and 57,500€ PPP in severe disease; healthcare accounted for 68%, 47% and 26%, respectively. Fatigue and cognitive difficulties were reported by 95% and 71% of participants, respectively; both had a significant independent effect on utility. Conclusion: Costs and utility were highly correlated with disease severity, but resource consumption was heavily influenced by healthcare systems organisation and availability of services.


Author(s):  
Manokaran Chinnusamy ◽  
Sathiyanarayanan Janakiraman ◽  
Roshna Elayidath ◽  
Ram Arvind ◽  
Pravin Surendran

Abstract Introduction India is on the verge of diabetes mellitus (DM) epidemic. Within the near future, DM will put a big burden on India’s already vulnerable and resourced health care system. The objectives of the study were to (1) estimate DM treatment-related out-of-pocket expenditure (OOPE) among type 2 DM patients with complications from a tertiary care hospital and (2) estimate the economic burden on the household income of these patients due to DM treatment-related OOPE.  Methods A hospital-based cross-sectional study was conducted among known type 2 diabetic individuals with complications admitted in a tertiary care hospital. Using a structured pretested questionnaire required data, such as sociodemographic details, direct costs, and indirect costs in health care of DM, which were collected by a personal interview method. Results Males constituted around 57% of the 100 patients who participated in the study. The average age of the population was 56 ± 10.03 years. The mean monthly income of family (in Indian Rupees [INR]) was 10,375.00 ± 9,201.55. Total expenditure includes the cost of medication, investigation, consultation fee, transportation, and miscellaneous expenditure. The average monthly OOPE in the management of DM for government and private facilities was INR 74 and 1,540, respectively. Among the total cost, the highest share was accrued toward medicines followed by diagnostics, miscellaneous, and transportation. There were 22% of families incurring catastrophic expenditure at the highest threshold of 40%. Socioeconomic status, history of at least one hospitalization in the past 6 months, and type of medications were factors found to be associated with costs. Conclusion Heavy economic burden highlights the urgent need for the health care agencies and policy bodies to plan and prioritize local health policies and DM management schemes accordingly.


2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 74-77
Author(s):  
Mohammad Enayet Hussain ◽  
Bithi Debnath ◽  
AFM Al Masum Khan ◽  
Md Ferdous Mian ◽  
Md Nahidul Islam ◽  
...  

Background: The visual evoked potentials (VEP) is a valuable tool to document occult lesions of the central visual channels especially within the optic nerve. Objectives: The purpose of the present study was to observe the findings of first few cases of VEP done in the neurophysiology department of the National Institute of Neurosciences (NINS), Dhaka, Bangladesh. Methodology: This cross-sectional study was conducted in the Department of Neurophysiology at the National Institute of Neurosciences and Hospital, Dhaka, Bangladesh from September 2017 to March 2020. All patients referred to the Neurophysiology Department of NINS for VEP were included. Pattern reversal VEPs were done using standard protocol set by International Federation of Clinical Neurophysiology (IFCN). Results: The mean age of the study population was 30.70 (±12.11) years (6-68 years) with 31 (46.3%) male and 36 (53.7%) female patients. The mean duration of illness was 8.71 (±1.78) months (3 days- 120 months). Most common presenting symptom was blurring of vision (37.3%) and dimness of vision (32.8%). Patterned VEP revealed mixed type (both demyelinating and axonal) of abnormality in most cases [29(43.35)]. The most common clinical diagnosis was multiple sclerosis (29.85%) and optic neuropathy (26.87%). In the clinically suspected cases of multiple sclerosis, optic neuropathy and optic neuritis most of the cases of VEP were abnormal and the p value is 0.04 in optic neuropathy and optic neuritis. Conclusion: The commonest presentation of the patients in this series were blurring of vision and dimness of vision. The most common clinical diagnosis for which VEP was asked for, was optic neuritis and multiple sclerosis. Most abnormalities were of mixed pattern (demyelinating and axonal). Journal of National Institute of Neurosciences Bangladesh, 2020;6(2): 74-77


2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 113-117
Author(s):  
Garett Griffith ◽  
Badeia Saed ◽  
Tracy Baynard

ABSTRACT Background: Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an autoimmune disease that impacts the central nervous system. MS generally results in decreased mobility and work capacity. Our objective was to determine exercise testing responses on both a treadmill and cycle ergometer among individuals with MS who were able to ambulate freely. Methods: Twenty-six individuals with MS participated in a cross-sectional study (44 ± 11 years; body mass index 26.8 ± 6.2 kg·m−2; expanded disability scale score 3.1 ± 0.9), with 24 individuals with complete test data for both treadmill and cycle ergometry tests. Peak aerobic capacity (VO2peak) for both treadmill and cycle ergometry tests were measured with indirect calorimetry. Results: Participants safely completed both treadmill and cycle ergometry tests, and treadmill testing yielded higher values (26.7 ± 6.4 mL·kg−1·min−1) compared with cycle ergometry (23.7 ± 5.7 mL·kg−1·min−1), with values ~12% greater for treadmill. When comparing tests to their respected predicted values within modality, treadmill tests were 8% lower and cycle ergometry tests were 10% lower than predicted. Conclusions: While peak aerobic capacity was very low for this population, treadmill tests were still higher than cycle ergometry data, with this difference between modes being similar to that observed in healthy adult populations. Additional research is required to determine if these findings are impacted by participation in physical activity or regular exercise.


Symmetry ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 598
Author(s):  
Massimiliano Pau ◽  
Bruno Leban ◽  
Michela Deidda ◽  
Federica Putzolu ◽  
Micaela Porta ◽  
...  

The majority of people with Multiple Sclerosis (pwMS), report lower limb motor dysfunctions, which may relevantly affect postural control, gait and a wide range of activities of daily living. While it is quite common to observe a different impact of the disease on the two limbs (i.e., one of them is more affected), less clear are the effects of such asymmetry on gait performance. The present retrospective cross-sectional study aimed to characterize the magnitude of interlimb asymmetry in pwMS, particularly as regards the joint kinematics, using parameters derived from angle-angle diagrams. To this end, we analyzed gait patterns of 101 pwMS (55 women, 46 men, mean age 46.3, average Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) score 3.5, range 1–6.5) and 81 unaffected individuals age- and sex-matched who underwent 3D computerized gait analysis carried out using an eight-camera motion capture system. Spatio-temporal parameters and kinematics in the sagittal plane at hip, knee and ankle joints were considered for the analysis. The angular trends of left and right sides were processed to build synchronized angle–angle diagrams (cyclograms) for each joint, and symmetry was assessed by computing several geometrical features such as area, orientation and Trend Symmetry. Based on cyclogram orientation and Trend Symmetry, the results show that pwMS exhibit significantly greater asymmetry in all three joints with respect to unaffected individuals. In particular, orientation values were as follows: 5.1 of pwMS vs. 1.6 of unaffected individuals at hip joint, 7.0 vs. 1.5 at knee and 6.4 vs. 3.0 at ankle (p < 0.001 in all cases), while for Trend Symmetry we obtained at hip 1.7 of pwMS vs. 0.3 of unaffected individuals, 4.2 vs. 0.5 at knee and 8.5 vs. 1.5 at ankle (p < 0.001 in all cases). Moreover, the same parameters were sensitive enough to discriminate individuals of different disability levels. With few exceptions, all the calculated symmetry parameters were found significantly correlated with the main spatio-temporal parameters of gait and the EDSS score. In particular, large correlations were detected between Trend Symmetry and gait speed (with rho values in the range of –0.58 to –0.63 depending on the considered joint, p < 0.001) and between Trend Symmetry and EDSS score (rho = 0.62 to 0.69, p < 0.001). Such results suggest not only that MS is associated with significantly marked interlimb asymmetry during gait but also that such asymmetry worsens as the disease progresses and that it has a relevant impact on gait performances.


Author(s):  
Zeinab E. Afifi ◽  
Rania I. Shehata ◽  
Asmaa F. El Sayed ◽  
El Sayed M. Hammad ◽  
Marwa R. Salem

Abstract Background Nutrition was claimed to be a factor in MS causation, course, complications, and management. Several studies were conducted to assess the nutritional status of MS patients; however, few studies were conducted to assess this problem in Egypt. Therefore, the purpose of the current study was to assess the nutritional status of a sample of MS patients. Methods The researchers conducted an exploratory cross-sectional study among 76 relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS) patients attending Kasr Alainy Multiple Sclerosis Unit (KAMSU) from October 2018 to January 2019 to assess the nutritional status of a sample of MS patients. Data were collected using a structured interview questionnaire including an inquiry about the socioeconomic status, and nutritional status using anthropometric measurements, patient-generated subjective global assessment (PG-SGA), semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaires (SQFFQ), and hemoglobin level measurement. Assessment of fatigue was done using the Modified Fatigue Impact Scale 5-items version. Results The mean age of the study participants was 30 ± 6 years. The disease duration ranged from 2 to 264 months. Malnutrition was prevalent among 67.1% (27.6 % overweight, 36.8% obese, and 2.6% underweight). Half of the investigated patients were anemic. According to the PG-SGA, more than half of the studied patients (53.9%) were classified as moderately or suspected malnourished. The unhealthy dietary habits such as taking only a few meals, junk food intake and skipping breakfast were observed in considerable proportions of the group. The SQFFQ revealed overconsumption of energy and fat, and less than acceptable consumption of dietary fibers by most of the studied patients. Conclusions Overweight, obesity, anemia, and unhealthy dietary habits were prevalent among the RRMS patients attending the KAMSU. Nutrition care service is extremely needed for this group of patients.


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