The cost of generalized anxiety disorder in primary care settings: results of the ANCORA study

Abstract

To assess the cost of illness of generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) in a primary healthcare setting in Spain. A cross-sectional, retrospective study was conducted. The sample comprised patients diagnosed with GAD according to ICD-10 criteria and a control group. Healthcare/non-healthcare resource utilization was recorded retrospectively for the 12 months prior to the study visit. Costs were estimated from a societal perspective. Two models have been produced to study the variables that influence the cost of the illness both, without and with controls. The study enrolled 456 patients [76.8 % women, 49.2 (17.0) years] with GAD and 74 controls without GAD [42.5 % women, 47.9 (16.7) years]. 67.8 % of subjects were on combination therapy (antidepressant + anxiolytic); 6 % were using 2 or more drugs to treat anxiety; and 23.4 % were on monotherapy. Total annual average costs were higher in the GAD group (€7,739 vs. €2,609), with mean costs attributable to GAD of €5,139 (healthcare costs: €1,329, indirect costs: 75 % of total cost, approximately). Age and health status measured by Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale and clinical global impression were related to costs. The improvements in quality of life measured by EQ-5D index are associated to lower cost. GAD treated in Spanish primary healthcare settings generated considerable healthcare costs and, particularly, loss-of-productivity costs.