title: Direct costs of managing Parkinson's disease in India: concerns in a developing country.
abstract: Medicines and surgical interventions improve the quality of life of Parkinson's disease (PD) patients. These are still expensive options and are unaffordable to those living in developing countries. Managing PD in Indians who have a low annual gross national income (GNI; 450-540 US dollars) and for whom only a few (3%) have health insurance is a challenge. We interviewed 175 consecutive PD patients regarding health insurance and money spent for treatment. The annual income of nearly half the patients was less than rupees 50,000 (1,148.63 US dollars). Patients in this study spend nearly 16% to 41.7% of the average Indian GNI to buy medicines. Costs of treating PD in India are lower than those in developed nations but are still out of reach for most Indian patients.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences, Bangalore, India.
authors.forename: Mona
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ragothaman
authors.forename: Shyla T
authors.initials: ST
authors.lastname: Govindappa
authors.forename: Rohini
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Rattihalli
authors.forename: Dodaballapur K
authors.initials: DK
authors.lastname: Subbakrishna
authors.forename: Uday B
authors.initials: UB
authors.lastname: Muthane
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000553:Ambulatory Care / Q000191:economics; D000978:Antiparkinson Agents / Q000191:economics / Q000627:therapeutic use; D003431:Cross-Cultural Comparison; D003906:Developing Countries; D016527:Drug Costs / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005260:Female; D005382:Financing, Personal / Q000191:economics; D017048:Health Care Costs / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005102:Health Expenditures / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D007182:Income / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D007194:India; D007348:Insurance, Health / Q000191:economics; D008297:Male; D008432:Mathematical Computing; D008875:Middle Aged; D010300:Parkinson Disease / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000191:economics*; D011446:Prospective Studies
chemical_list: D000978:Antiparkinson Agents