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. 2021 Jul 16;14(3):e24.
doi: 10.12786/bn.2021.14.e24. eCollection 2021 Nov.

The Socioeconomic Burden of Acquired Brain Injury among the Korean Patients over 20 Years of Age in 2015-2017: a Prevalence-Based Approach

Ye Seol Lee  1   2 , Hoo Young Lee  1   2   3   4 , Ja-Ho Leigh  1   2   3 , Yoonjeong Choi  1   2 , Han-Kyoul Kim  1   2 , Byung-Mo Oh  1   3   5   6
Affiliations

The Socioeconomic Burden of Acquired Brain Injury among the Korean Patients over 20 Years of Age in 2015-2017: a Prevalence-Based Approach

Ye Seol Lee et al. Brain Neurorehabil. .

Abstract

Acquired brain injury (ABI) is a leading cause of serious long-term disability resulting in substantial economic costs for post-ABI care. This study was conducted to estimate the socioeconomic burden of persons with ABI in Korea. We used a prevalence-based approach and societal perspective to estimate the direct medical, non-medical costs and indirect costs of ABI, including stroke, traumatic brain injury (TBI), and non-traumatic ABI (anoxia, brain tumor, encephalitis, meningitis, hydrocephalus, and other brain disorders) from 2015 to 2017. The study population included patients with ABI over 20 years of age and analyzed according to insurance types encompassing National Health Insurance and automobile insurance. The socioeconomic burden of ABI was 4.67, 5.18, and 5.73 trillion KRW (approximately 4,162, 4,612, and 5,106 million USD) from 2015 to 2017 and around 0.3% of Korea's GDP annually. Estimating by disease, the socioeconomic cost was 72.4% for stroke, 18.6% for TBI, and 9.0% for non-traumatic ABI. Calculated by cost component, medical costs and non-medical costs showed a slight increase every year. Through this study, establishment of rehabilitation systems maximizing the health and quality of life for injured persons remain the key public health strategy for ABI to reduce socioeconomic burden and financial policies to support patients should be needed.

Keywords: Brain Injuries; Brain Injuries, Traumatic; Cost of Illness; Stroke.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of Interest: The corresponding author of this manuscript is an editor of Brain & NeuroRehabilitation. The corresponding author did not engage in any part of the review and decision-making process for this manuscript. The other authors have no potential conflicts of interest to disclose.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1. The concept of socioeconomic burden.
NHI, National Health Insurance; NHIS, National Health Insurance Service; HIRA, Health Insurance Review & Assessment Service; KNHNES, Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey; KOSIS, Korean Statistical Information Service; MoEL, Ministry of Employment and Labor.
Fig. 2
Fig. 2. The socioeconomic burden of ABI in 2015–2017.
Fig. 3
Fig. 3. The medical costs between acute and convalescent phase.
TBI, traumatic brain injury.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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