RESUMO
BACKGROUND: The costs of treating eating disorders are often considered high. AIMS: The objective was to perform a cost-utility analysis to estimate the cost-effectiveness of treatment of anorexia nervosa (AN). METHODS: Thirty-nine patients entering treatment of AN completed the 15D health-related quality-of-life (HRQoL) questionnaire before and 2 years after the start of treatment. Direct hospital costs were obtained. Quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) gained were calculated and cost-utility assessed. RESULTS: Patients' baseline HRQoL was severely impaired. During follow-up, mean HRQoL improved statistically significantly. The cost per QALY gained was 5296 (best-case scenario) or 64 440 (base-case scenario) (11 559 or 71 600 discounted 3%) depending on the assumptions used in the analysis. CONCLUSIONS: The cost per QALY was in the same range as that of many other interventions provided in specialized medical care and within the limits usually considered acceptable, indicating that the treatment of AN is cost-effective.
Assuntos
Anorexia Nervosa/economia , Anorexia Nervosa/terapia , Análise Custo-Benefício , Qualidade de Vida , Anos de Vida Ajustados por Qualidade de Vida , Adolescente , Adulto , Feminino , Finlândia , Humanos , Adulto JovemRESUMO
OBJECTIVE: The costs of treating eating disorders are high. Our objective was to perform a cost-utility analysis of treatment of bulimia nervosa. METHOD: 72 patients entering treatment of bulimia nervosa (ICD-10 diagnosis) completed the 15D health-related quality of life (HRQoL) questionnaire and the Eating Disorder Inventory (EDI) before and 6 months after the start of treatment. Quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) gained were calculated and cost-utility was assessed within the time horizon of 10 years. RESULTS: Baseline HRQoL was severely impaired in the patients. As a consequence of treatment, mean HRQoL improved clinically and statistically significantly. The cost per QALY gained varied from 1,455 to 16,481 (from 4,428 to 19,663 discounted at 5%) depending on the assumptions used in the analysis. DISCUSSION: HRQoL of bulimia nervosa patients is severely impaired, but treatment has a clear positive effect on HRQoL. The cost per QALY gained is comparable to many other treatments.