Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the economic burden of tuberculosis (TB) in Denmark,
METHODS: 8,433 Danish TB-patients (1998-2010) were matched with 33,707 controls by age, gender, civil status and geography. Health-related costs (health system contacts and -procedures, medications) and socio-economic parameters (foregone earnings and social transfer expenses) were calculated on data from national databases. The same information was obtained for 3,485 spouses of TB-patients, and 17,403 controls.
RESULTS: Health-related costs were higher for cases throughout the period. Before diagnosis, cases posed € 1,180 more health costs per year than controls. Excess health costs in the 2 years around diagnosing and treating TB were € 10,509. Cases received an average excess public transfer income of € 3,345 before vs. € 3,121 after diagnosis. Average employment income deficiency was € 11,635 before vs. € 13,885 after diagnosis, but the increasing difference showed a linear shape throughout the period. Spouses also had lower income, more social transfer, and posed higher health-related costs than matched controls.
CONCLUSION: We estimate the direct costs per TB patient to be €10,509. TB patients and their households are characterized by increasingly lower employment income, lower employment rate, and higher dependency on public transfer, but the socio/economic deterioration is rather a risk factor for TB than a direct consequence of the disease.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Journal | International Journal of Infectious Diseases |
| Volume | 32 |
| Pages (from-to) | 183-190 |
| Number of pages | 8 |
| ISSN | 1201-9712 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 1 Mar 2015 |
Keywords
- Adult
- Aged
- Aged, 80 and over
- Case-Control Studies
- Cost of Illness
- Denmark
- Employment
- Female
- Humans
- Income
- Male
- Middle Aged
- Poverty
- Retrospective Studies
- Socioeconomic Factors
- Spouses
- Tuberculosis
- Young Adult
