title: Burden of schizophrenia on selected comorbidity costs.
abstract: Patients suffering from schizophrenia tend to have high rates of medical comorbidities and mortality.This study evaluated the healthcare costs of patients with schizophrenia and specific comorbidities relative to patients without schizophrenia with the same comorbidities, using Medicaid insurance claims databases from five states (from 2001-2010). The most common comorbidities were hypertension (48.8%), substance abuse (39.1%) and diabetes (28.4%). Patients with schizophrenia incurred greater all-cause monthly healthcare costs (cost difference [95% CI]: US$978 [933; 1024]) and comorbidity-related costs (cost difference [95% CI]: US$288 [269; 307]). Schizophrenia was also associated with significantly higher comorbidity-related costs in each comorbidity subgroup (among the three most common comorbidities: 99% higher in hypertension, 293% in substance abuse, and 105% in diabetes). The results suggest that patients with schizophrenia and comorbidities common in patients with schizophrenia had higher all-cause and comorbidity-related healthcare costs compared with patients without schizophrenia with the same comorbidities.
authors.affiliation: Groupe d'analyse, Ltée, 1000 De La Gauchetière Ouest, Bureau 1200 Montréal, Québec H3B 4W5, Canada.
authors.forename: Marie-Hélène
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Lafeuille
authors.forename: Jason
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Dean
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Fastenau
authors.forename: Jessica
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Panish
authors.forename: William
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Olson
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Markowitz
authors.forename: Mei Sheng
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Duh
authors.forename: Patrick
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Lefebvre
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D015897:Comorbidity; D017281:Cost of Illness; D005260:Female; D017048:Health Care Costs; D006295:Health Resources; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012559:Schizophrenia / Q000191:economics*