Frequency and economic impact of comorbid cardiac conditions with multiple sclerosis

Economic burden of multiple sclerosis in the United States: A systematic literature review

BACKGROUND

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is chronic progressive disease that poses a significant economic burden to patients and health care systems in the United States. We conducted a systematic literature review to provide up-to-date insights on the economic burden of MS in the United States.

OBJECTIVE

To comprehensively review and summarize the latest published evidence on the economic burden of MS with a focus on cost, resource use, and work productivity.

METHODS

A systematic literature search was conducted using the Embase and Medline databases to identify studies, published between January 2011 and July 2022, reporting cost, resource use, or work productivity outcomes among people with MS in the United States. Clinical trials, economic modeling studies, and review articles were excluded. Details of eligible studies, including study design, patient population, and study outcomes for the overall population, as well as subgroups of interest, were extracted and summarized qualitatively.

RESULTS

Overall, 65 studies reporting cost, resource use, or work productivity data were included with majority of studies using claims data. The direct costs associated with MS ranged from $16,614 (2006) to $72,744 (2017) per patient per year with diseasemodifying therapies (DMTs) being the major cost contributors accounting for 43%-78%. The indirect costs reported ranged from $9,122 (2017) to $30,601 (2011) per patient per year with absenteeism, early retirement, and informal care being the key drivers for indirect costs. Costs, resource use, and work impairment were significantly higher for patients with severe disability compared with those with mild disability. Pharmacy costs were the major cost drivers in patients with mild, moderate, and severe disability. Similarly, patients with relapses incurred significantly higher costs, resource use, and work impairment compared with those without relapses. Additional hospitalization charges were the major driver of higher costs in patients who experienced relapses compared with those without relapses.

CONCLUSIONS

Direct costs, particularly DMTs, appear to be the major cost drivers for people with MS in the United States. Availability of lower-cost therapies may considerably decrease the economic burden on these patients and the health care systems. Future research focusing on indirect costs, intangible costs, and their contributors would contribute to further understanding of economic burden to avoid underestimation of the financial burden experienced by the patients.

Influence of Comorbidities on Healthcare Expenditures and Perceived Physical and Mental Health Status Among Adults with Multiple Sclerosis: A Propensity Score-Matched US National-Level Study

Objective

To evaluate the effect of comorbidities on healthcare expenditures and perceived physical and mental health status among adults with multiple sclerosis (MS) compared to propensity score-matched non-MS controls.

Methods

A retrospective, cross-sectional, matched cohort study was conducted using Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (2005–2015) data. The base study sample consisted of adults (age ≥18 years) who were alive and had positive total healthcare expenditures during the survey calendar year. Adults with MS were propensity-matched (1:1) to non-MS controls based on age, gender, and race/ethnicity using greedy matching algorithm. Healthcare expenditures consisted of total and subtypes of expenditures. Health status consisted of perceived physical and mental health status. Comorbidities were identified using ICD-9-CM and Clinical Classification System codes. Ordinary least squares regression and multinomial logistic regression were used to analyze the healthcare expenditures and health status variables, respectively.

Results

Final study sample consisted of 541 adults in each MS and non-MS control groups after propensity score matching. After adjusting for potential confounders, individuals with MS had greater total and subtypes of expenditures compared to non-MS controls, and several comorbidities (eg, depression, hypertension) were significantly associated with increased healthcare expenditures. Yearly average total expenditures (expressed in 2018 US$) were significantly (p<0.001) higher for adults with MS ($29,396) than propensity score-matched non-MS adults ($7875). Moreover, after adjusting for all individual-level factors, adults with MS experienced 363% (p<0.001) higher total expenditures compared to propensity score-matched non-MS controls. Individuals with MS were more likely to report poorer physical and good mental health status compared to propensity score-matched non-MS controls, and several comorbidities (eg, anxiety, depression) were significant independent predictors of poorer health status. For example, adults with MS were four times more likely (OR: 4.10, 95% CI: 2.42–6.96) to report fair/poor physical health status compared to excellent/very good physical health status compared with non-MS controls. Adults with MS were 42% (OR: 1.42, 95% CI: 1.01–1.99) more likely than propensity score-matched non-MS controls to report good rather than very good or excellent mental health status. However, there was no difference between adults with MS and propensity score-matched non-MS controls in terms of reporting fair or poor than very good or excellent mental health status.

Conclusion

Findings from this study indicate substantial economic and health status burdens among adults with MS at the US national-level that are significantly influenced by comorbidities.

Effect of Chronic Medical Conditions in Veterans with Multiple Sclerosis on Long-Term Disability

Background

The goal of this observational study was to examine the effect of common chronic medical conditions (CMCs) on long-term disability (activity limitation) in veterans already diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS).

Material/Methods

We retrospectively reviewed the electronic charts of 124 veterans with MS who have been regularly followed in our MS clinic for 10 or more years. General linear model analysis examined whether MS-related severity as measured by the Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) and the presence of CMCs affected long-term disability as measured by the total score on the Functional Independence Measure (TFIM).

Results

Commonly encountered CMCs were increased BMI (61%), hyperlipidemia (78%), hypertension (65%), current smokers (47%), and arthritis/arthralgia (24%). Results suggest that the number of CMCs was not predictive of final TFIM scores; of the variables examined, only initial EDSS score was predictive of final TFIM scores.

Conclusions

The presence of CMCs did not affect the long-term disability in veterans diagnosed with MS, this was due mainly to CMCs being closely monitored and co-treated with other medical specialties.