To compare the impact of chronic pruritus and chronic pain on quality of life (QoL) using directly elicited health utility scores.

No abstract

To estimate annual direct and indirect health care costs in patients with chronic idiopathic urticaria (CIU) managed with conventional therapies.Design: A cost analysis consisting of a survey-guided and retrospective medical record review of direct and indirect health care costs from a societal perspective in patients with CIU.Setting: The Johns Hopkins University allergy and dermatology ambulatory clinics.Participants: Fifty adults with active CIU were recruited in sequential order. Individuals who were taking corticosteroids or other immunosuppressants in the month before enrollment were excluded from the study. Main Outcome Measures:We estimated direct health care costs, which included laboratory, medication, outpatient visit, and emergency department and hospital visit costs. We also estimated indirect costs, which included earnings lost owing to travel to outpatient visits and absences from work owing to CIU-related illness.