Relationship between obesity and school absenteeism in Australian children: Implications for carer productivity

Carrello, Joseph; Lung, Thomas; Killedar, Anagha; Baur, Louise A.; Hayes, Alison

doi:10.1016/j.orcp.2021.09.006

Cited by 6 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 40 publications

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“…Results found that children with obesity missed on average one extra day of school annually in comparison to those without overweight or obesity. This amounted to $338 in indirect carer productivity losses per child 128 . There has also been an increase in studies investigating childhood obesity related healthcare costs, with findings suggesting substantial medical costs as early as the first 5 years of life, 129 and greater utilization of general practitioner and specialist weight services 52,92,130 .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This amounted to $338 in indirect carer productivity losses per child. 128 There has also been an increase in studies investigating childhood obesity related healthcare costs, with findings suggesting substantial medical costs as early as the first 5 years of life, 129 and greater utilization of general practitioner and specialist weight services. 52,92,130 Although the inclusion of such costs can be a laborious task, economic evaluations ought to consider cross-sectoral costs or discuss potential intervention impacts across sectors.…”

Section: Equity Considerationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Methods for the economic evaluation of obesity prevention dietary interventions in children: A systematic review and critical appraisal of the evidence

et al. 2022

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Objectives: We aim to describe and provide a discussion of methods used to conduct economic evaluations of dietary interventions in children and adolescents, including long-term modelling, and to make recommendations to assist health economists in the design and reporting of such evaluations.Methods: A systematic review was conducted in 11 bibliographic databases and the grey literature with searches undertaken between January 2000 and December 2021. A study was included if it (1) was an economic evaluation or modelling study of an obesity-prevention dietary intervention and (2) targeted 2-to 18-year-olds.Results: Twenty-six studies met the inclusion criteria. Twelve studies conducted an economic evaluation alongside a clinical trial, and 14 studies modelled long-term health and cost outcomes. Four overarching methodological challenges were identified: modelling long-term impact of interventions, measuring and valuing health outcomes, cost inclusions and equity considerations.Conclusions: Variability in methods used to predict, measure and value long-term benefits in adulthood from short-term clinical outcomes in childhood was evident across studies. Key recommendations to improve the design and analysis of future economic evaluations include the consideration of weight regain and diminishing intervention effects within future projections; exploration of wider intervention benefits not restricted to quality-of-life outcomes; and inclusion of parental or caregiver opportunity costs.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Equity Considerationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Methods for the economic evaluation of obesity prevention dietary interventions in children: A systematic review and critical appraisal of the evidence

et al. 2022

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“…This approach measures lost productivity as the amount of time that working life is reduced due to illness. 49 Data on annual excess absenteeism from school for adolescents with obesity aged 10-14 years 9 where average daily wage was used to represent missed work from the child/adolescent's parent or caregiver. 9 For valuation of paid work absenteeism for individuals aged 15-64 years, we used the following, previously described, equation 51 : where age-and sex-adjusted participation and employment rates were sourced from Australian administrative data.…”

Section: Indirect Costsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…49 Data on annual excess absenteeism from school for adolescents with obesity aged 10-14 years 9 where average daily wage was used to represent missed work from the child/adolescent's parent or caregiver. 9 For valuation of paid work absenteeism for individuals aged 15-64 years, we used the following, previously described, equation 51 : where age-and sex-adjusted participation and employment rates were sourced from Australian administrative data. 52 No indirect costs were accrued by individuals beyond 64 years in the model, as we did not have data informing weight-associated lost productivity.…”

Section: Indirect Costsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…such as depression and anxiety. 2,6,7 This has significant economic consequences, both directly through greater healthcare costs 8 and indirectly through excess school absenteeism, 9 poorer academic performance [10][11][12] and reduced future economic prosperity. 13 Further, adolescent overweight and obesity tend to persist and progress over the life-course, 14,15 increasing the magnitude of obesity-related morbidities and premature mortality in adulthood, the costs of which were estimated to be $8.6 billion in Australia in 2015.…”

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confidence: 99%

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Potential cost‐effectiveness of e‐health interventions for treating overweight and obesity in Australian adolescents

et al. 2023

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Summary Background E‐health, defined as the use of information and communication technologies to improve healthcare delivery and health outcomes, has been promoted as a cost‐effective strategy to treat adolescent overweight and obesity. However, evidence supporting this claim is lacking. Objectives Assess the potential cost‐effectiveness of a hypothetical e‐health intervention for adolescents with overweight and obesity. Methods The costs and effect size (BMI reduction) of the hypothetical intervention were sourced from recent systematic reviews. Using a micro‐simulation model with a lifetime time horizon, we conducted a modelled cost‐utility analysis of the intervention compared to a ‘do‐nothing’ approach. To explore uncertainty, we conducted bootstrapping on individual‐level costs and quality‐adjusted life years (QALYs) and performed multiple one‐way sensitivity analyses. Results The incremental cost‐effectiveness ratio (ICER) for the e‐health intervention was dominant (cheaper and more effective), with a 96% probability of being cost‐effective at a willingness‐to‐pay (WTP) of $50 000/QALY. The ICER remained dominant in all sensitivity analyses except when using the lower bounds of the hypothetical intervention effect size, which reduced the probability of cost‐effectiveness at a WTP of $50 000/QALY to 51%. Conclusion E‐health interventions for treatment of adolescent overweight and obesity demonstrate very good cost‐effectiveness potential and should be considered by healthcare decision makers. However, further research on the efficacy of such interventions is warranted to strengthen the case for investment.

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Economic costs associated with unhealthy weight control behaviors among Australian adolescents

Thai,

Le,

Mihalopoulos

et al. 2023

Intl J Eating Disorders

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ObjectiveThis study explored the relationship between unhealthy weight control behaviors (UWCBs) and their associated economic costs among adolescents using the 2014–2018 Longitudinal Study of Australian Children (LSAC).MethodsLSAC data in Wave 6 (n = 3538 adolescents aged 14–15 years), Wave 7 n = 3089 adolescents aged 16–17 years), and Wave 8 (n = 3037 adolescents aged 18–19 years) were derived from a representative sample of Australian adolescents. UWCBs were measured using the self‐reported Branched Eating Disorder Test questionnaire. UWCBs were sub‐classified into having fasting behaviors, using weight loss supplements or purging behaviors. Economic costs include healthcare and productivity costs to caregivers. Healthcare costs were measured using data from the Medicare and Pharmaceutical Benefits, which includes both medical and pharmaceutical costs. Productivity losses were measured using caregivers' lost leisure time due to UWCBs among adolescents.ResultsThe mixed effect model identified statistically significant higher economic costs (mean difference = $453, 95% CIs $154, $752), higher health care costs (mean difference = $399, 95% CIs $102, $695), and higher productivity costs (mean difference = $59, 95% CIs $29, $90) for adolescents with UWCBs compared to their peers with no UWCBs. Subgroup analysis revealed that higher costs were associated with fasting and purging behaviors.DiscussionUWCBs were associated with increased economic costs during adolescence. Our finding suggests there should be a policy focus on tackling UWCBs to reduce the economic burden on the healthcare system and society.Public SignificanceThe study contributes to existing knowledge by investigating the direct healthcare costs and productivity losses associated with unhealthy weight control behaviors in Australian adolescents (14–18 years old) using a dataset that follows Australian adolescents over time. We found that engaging in unhealthy weight control behaviors such as fasting, using weight loss supplements, and purging was linked to higher costs among adolescents, suggesting policies should focus on addressing these behaviors.

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Relationship between obesity and school absenteeism in Australian children: Implications for carer productivity

Cited by 6 publications

References 40 publications

Methods for the economic evaluation of obesity prevention dietary interventions in children: A systematic review and critical appraisal of the evidence

Methods for the economic evaluation of obesity prevention dietary interventions in children: A systematic review and critical appraisal of the evidence

Potential cost‐effectiveness of e‐health interventions for treating overweight and obesity in Australian adolescents

Economic costs associated with unhealthy weight control behaviors among Australian adolescents

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