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. 2012 Nov;140(11):2096-109.
doi: 10.1017/S0950268811002640. Epub 2012 Jan 10.

The health and economic burden of chickenpox and herpes zoster in Belgium

J Bilcke  1 , B Ogunjimi, C Marais, F de Smet, M Callens, K Callaert, E van Kerschaver, J Ramet, P van Damme, P Beutels
Affiliations

The health and economic burden of chickenpox and herpes zoster in Belgium

J Bilcke et al. Epidemiol Infect. 2012 Nov.

Abstract

Varicella-zoster virus causes chickenpox (CP) and after reactivation herpes zoster (HZ). Vaccines are available against both diseases warranting an assessment of the pre-vaccination burden of disease. We collected data from relevant Belgian databases and performed five surveys of CP and HZ patients. The rates at which a general practitioner is visited at least once for CP and HZ are 346 and 378/100 000 person-years, respectively. The average CP and HZ hospitalization rates are 5·3 and 14·2/100 000 person-years respectively. The direct medical cost for HZ is about twice as large as the direct medical cost for CP. The quality-adjusted life years lost for ambulatory CP patients consulting a physician is more than double that of those not consulting a physician (0·010 vs. 0·004). In conclusion, both diseases cause a substantial burden in Belgium.

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