title: Economic differences in direct and indirect costs between people with epilepsy and without epilepsy.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To provide generalizable estimates of economic burden in epilepsy and nonepilepsy populations and a comprehensive accounting for employment-based lost productivity associated with epilepsy in current US health care systems as compared with other chronic diseases.
  
  
  METHODS
  We use the nationally representative data source (Medical Expenditure Panel Survey) from 1998 to 2009 to create a retrospective cohort of people diagnosed with epilepsy by a health professional and a comparison cohort of people with no epilepsy.
  
  
  METHODS
  Health care utilization and direct costs for all components of treatment, including prescription medications, wages, employment, educational attainment, family income, and lost productivity were outcomes.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We observed economic disparities associated with epilepsy in the United States despite high rates of modern treatments (89% on anticonvulsant therapies). Only 42% of the people with epilepsy over age 18 reported employment compared with 70% of people with no epilepsy; among those, people with epilepsy reported missing an average of 12 days of work because of illness or injury as compared with 4 days in the nonepilepsy cohort. Holding other variables constant, people with epilepsy had a loss of productivity of $9504 in 2011 dollars compared with people with no epilepsy. In comparison, diabetes was associated with annual average lost productivity valued at $3358 and depression at $3182.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Lost wage-based productivity associated with epilepsy was nearly equal to combined wage losses associated with diabetes, depression, anxiety, and asthma together. To evaluate societal burden of illness, results illustrate the importance of indirect costs in addition to treated prevalence and direct medical costs.
authors.affiliation: Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Colorado, 12850 E. Montview Boulevard, Campus Box C238, Aurora, CO 80045, USA. anne.libby@ucdenver.edu
authors.forename: Anne M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Libby
authors.forename: Vahram
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Ghushchyan
authors.forename: Robert Brett
authors.initials: RB
authors.lastname: McQueen
authors.forename: Julia F
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Slejko
authors.forename: Jacqueline L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Bainbridge
authors.forename: Jonathan D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Campbell
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D015897:Comorbidity; D017281:Cost of Illness; D004526:Efficiency; D004651:Employment / Q000191:economics; D004827:Epilepsy / Q000191:economics* / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006296:Health Services / Q000191:economics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D007182:Income; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012737:Sex Factors; D014481:United States; D055815:Young Adult