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. 2009 Oct;34(4):850-7.
doi: 10.1183/09031936.00166108. Epub 2009 Apr 8.

Present and future costs of COPD in Iceland and Norway: results from the BOLD study

R Nielsen  1 , A Johannessen, B Benediktsdottir, T Gislason, A S Buist, A Gulsvik, S D Sullivan, T A Lee
Affiliations

Present and future costs of COPD in Iceland and Norway: results from the BOLD study

R Nielsen et al. Eur Respir J. 2009 Oct.

Abstract

The Burden of Obstructive Lung Disease (BOLD) initiative provides standardised estimates of the burden of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) worldwide. We estimate the current and future economic burden of COPD in Reykjavik, Iceland and Bergen, Norway using data from the BOLD initiative. Data on utilisation of healthcare resources were gathered from the BOLD survey, existing literature and unit costs from national sources. Economic data were applied to a Markov model using transition probabilities derived from Framingham data. Sensitivity analyses were conducted varying unit costs, utilisation and prevalence of disease. The cost of COPD was 478 euro per patient per yr in Iceland and 284 euro per patient per yr in Norway. The estimated cumulative costs of COPD for the population aged > or = 40 yrs, were 130 million euro and 1,539 million euro for the following 10 yrs in Iceland and Norway, respectively. Costs of COPD accounted for 1.2 and 0.7% of healthcare budgets in Iceland and Norway, respectively. Sensitivity analyses showed estimates were most sensitive to changes in exacerbation frequency. COPD has a significant economic burden in both Iceland and Norway and will grow in the future. Interventions aimed at avoiding exacerbations will have the most impact on costs of COPD over the next 20 yrs.

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Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
Distribution of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease-related costs (€) in a) Iceland and b) Norway, in the year 2005. □: exacerbation cost; formula image: drug cost; formula image: physician contacts; ■: other costs.
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
Modelled chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) prevalence in Iceland from the year 2005 to 2025, in male (––––) and female (-----) subjects aged ≥40 yrs.
FIGURE 3
FIGURE 3
Modelled chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) prevalence in Norway from the year 2005 to 2025, in male (––––) and female (-----) subjects aged ≥40 yrs.
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