Results of a new investigation have revealed that during a two-year period, the overall U.S. healthcare costs were twice as much for epilepsy patients with unstable AED treatment (switch, add-on or discontinuation of treatment), compared to those on stable treatment (no change in treatment regimen), and emergency room costs were roughly three to eight times higher.

At the 29th International Epilepsy Congress this week in Rome, Italy, the results from this retrospective cohort study conducted using a U.S. administrative health claims data was presented.

12,718 patients with epilepsy taking one or more AEDs over the course of two years were followed in the investigation. During the observation period, demographic features, baseline characteristics and total yearly healthcare costs were stratified by AED treatment pattern (stable versus unstable).

During the study, 53% of all epilepsy patients had unstable AED therapy (25% discontinuation, 22% add-on, 6% switch). In comparison to 28% of unstable treatment, 18% of patients with stable treatment had been diagnosed one year or less prior to baseline.

Compared to the overall healthcare costs for patients on stable treatment ($11,505), the cost for patients with unstable treatment were two times or more higher, AED switch ($28,732) and add-on ($31,321). Emergency room costs for those with unstable treatment (add-on, $9,240, switch, $6,392, discontinuation, $3,012) were on average 3-8 times higher in comparison to patients on stable therapy ($1,176).

Study author, Dr. Florent Richy, Head of Global Epidemiology, UCB and Adjunct Professor of Epidemiology at the University of Liege, Belgium, explained:

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Written by Grace Rattue
Medical News Today