Cost-of-illness studies and cost-effectiveness analyses in eating disorders: A systematic review

✍ Scribed by Stuhldreher, Nina ;Konnopka, Alexander ;Wild, Beate ;Herzog, Wolfgang ;Zipfel, Stephan ;Löwe, Bernd ;König, Hans-Helmut

• Publisher: Wiley (John Wiley & Sons)
• Year: 2012
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 806 KB
• Volume: 45
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0276-3478
• DOI: 10.1002/eat.20977

✦ Synopsis

Abstract

Objective:

To review cost‐of‐illness studies (COIs) and cost‐effectiveness analyses (CEAs) of eating disorders (EDs) and to describe their methodological quality.

Method:

A systematic literature search was done. Search results passed through a selection process, included studies were classified as COIs, CEAs, or “other cost studies” (OCS). Costs were inflated and converted to 2008 US$ purchasing power parities (PPP). Quality criteria were developed and applied to each study.

Results:

Five COI, two CEA, and eleven “OCS” were reviewed. Most studies focused on anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa. Annual costs per patient ranged from 1,288 to 8,042 US$‐PPP. All interventions, investigated in CEA, were more effective and less costly than the alternative treatments.

Discussion:

The number of publications investigating costs in EDs has increased recently. However, no COI provided a comprehensive estimate of costs, and the comparability of CEA was limited. Nonetheless, the results indicate that the costs arising from EDs are substantial. © 2012 by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. (Int J Eat Disord 2012)