Economic burden of stroke in a large county in Sweden

Abstract

BackgroundStroke remains to be a major burden of disease, often causing death or physical impairment or disability. This paper estimates the economic burden of stroke in a large county of 1.5 million inhabitants in western Sweden.MethodsThe economic burden of stroke was estimated from a societal perspective with an incidence approach. Data were collected from clinical registries and 3,074 patients were included. In the cost calculations, both direct and indirect costs were estimated and were based on costs for 12 months after a first-ever stroke.ResultsThe total excess costs in the first 12 months after the first-ever stroke for a population of 1.5 million was 629 million SEK (€69 million). Men consumed more acute care in hospitals, whereas women consumed more rehabilitation and long-term care provided by the municipalities. Younger patients brought a significantly higher burden on society compared with older patients due to the loss of productivity and the increased use of resources in health care.ConclusionsThe results of this cost-of-illness study were based on an improved calculation process in a number of fields and are consistent with previous studies. In essence, 50% of costs for stroke care fall on acute care hospital, 40% on rehabilitation and long-time care and informal care and productivity loss explains 10% of total cost for the stroke disease. The result of this study can be used for further development of the methods for economic analyses as well as for analysis of improvements and investments in health care.

Activity among long-term stroke survivors. A study based on an ICF-oriented analysis of two established ADL and social activity instruments

“…Stroke is a primary cause of adult disability that often leads to dependence on relatives and caregivers to manage daily life, as well as restrictions in activity and participation (3). Not only the individual and his/her family are affected but there are also societal consequences in terms of long-term costs for healthcare and social support (4). Additionally, in the coming years a growing number of people ageing with the effects of stroke can be expected as a result of declining mortality rates and a higher incidence of stroke among younger people (5).…”

“…Not the least because of inconsistent definitions of activity as well as variations between assessment instruments regarding what types of activities they cover (9,10). Considering that the benefits of activity on health and survival may differ in relation to the type of activity (11) and in relation to 4 gender and age (8,12), it is important that results are presented with sufficient detail. Moreover, instruments used to assess activity post stroke are commonly presented in terms of total scores even though this may not be adequate for multidimensional scales (13).…”

Out-of-Pocket Costs for Childhood Stroke: The Impact of Chronic Illness on Parents' Pocketbooks

“…In a study of indirect costs for 3,074 Swedes who had an incident ischemic or hemorrhagic stroke in 2008, informal care during the first year represented 6% of total costs while lost wages represented another 9%. 22 In a study of indirect costs for 27,660 Australians who had an ischemic stroke in 2004, out-of-pocket and caregiver costs accounted for 6.8% of total cost in the first year. 23 In a study of indirect costs of ischemic stroke and TIA in 7,735 Irish in 2007, informal care accounted for 9% of total stroke costs and lost wages accounted for 20%.…”

Current status of stroke epidemiology in Greece: A panorama

“…Over the last decade, there have been several studies which have estimated the direct and indirect clinical costs of strokes [59,60]. Direct costs include all the costs that are directly associated to the provision of health care (e.g.…”

“…The differences which appear in results between different studies can be attributed to the differences in data collection, population size, observation period and definition of cost components [62]. Several studies have estimated the economic cost of strokes in developed countries [60,63], as well as in developing countries [64,65]. As an example, the healthcare and societal costs of strokes in Italy, have been found to have amounted to 11,747 s and 19,953 s per year, per stroke survivor, respectively [57].…”