Table 1.
Characteristics of studies included in review
| Study | Study design | N | Country Patient population | Study objective | Follow-up period | Economic outcomes measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beghi et al. 2004 [14] | Cohort study | 631 | Italy 18 years of age and older NDE, SR, OS, NDR, DR or SC* (HIC) |
To investigate the costs of epilepsy in different prognostic categories | 12 months | - Direct costs |
| Boon et al. 2002 [15] | Cohort study | 84 | Belgium All ages Pre-surgical candidates who underwent a complete pre-surgical evaluation at Ghent University Hospital (HIC) |
To compare and economically evaluate epilepsy-related direct medical costs incurred by different treatment modalities (conservatively, surgically and vague nerve stimulation- treated) and to determine. | Mean follow-up interval of 26 months | - Direct costs |
| Cockerell 1994 [4] | Cohort study | 602 | UK Newly diagnosed seizure disorder (sample of the National General Practice Study of Epilepsy (NGPSE) (HIC) |
To assess the epilepsy related socio-economic costs in a population so that health care priorities can be set | Mean follow-up interval 6.6 years | - Direct costs |
| Das et al. 2007 [25] | Cohort study | 1450 | India No age indicated New patients with epilepsy in the Burdwan district (LMIC) |
To evaluate the rate of discontinuation of epilepsy treatment and the related socio-economic factors responsible for discontinuation | 12 months | - Direct costs - Indirect costs - Income |
| De Zelicourt et al. 2000 [20] | Cohort study | 1942 | France More than 1 month of age, Newly diagnosed unprovoked seizure (HIC) |
Estimation of the direct medical cost for patients during the first two years after diagnosis | 24 months | - Direct costs |
| Farmer et al. 1992 [26] | Quasi randomized trial | 215 | Ecuador No age indicated Epilepsy (identified in an epidemiological survey) (UMI) |
To report the effects of epilepsy and its treatment on the social functioning of patients treated in Northern Ecuador | 12 months | - Employment status |
| Guerrini et al. 2001 [16] | Cohort study | 189 | Italy Children and adolescents Followed up by child neurologist (university department, general hospital, outpatient department) (HIC) |
To compare the direct costs of epilepsy in a child neurology referral population, stratified by disease, duration, and severity, across three health care settings. | 12 months | - Direct costs of epilepsy |
| Halpern et al. 2011 [34] | Cohort study | 574 | USA All ages Epilepsy (HIC) |
To assess whether people with epilepsy who are uninsured and those who have Medicaid coverage have greater out-of-pocket costs | 6 years | - Out-of-pocket costs |
| Helmstaedter et al. 2000 [33] | Cohort study | 161 | Germany Adults Surgically or non-surgically treated patients with drug-resistant temporal lobe epilepsy (HIC) |
To investigate the long-term effects of surgical and non-surgical treatment of drug-resistant temporal lobe epilepsy according to socioeconomic development | Mean follow-up interval 58 months | - Employment status |
| Kotsopoulos et al. 2003 [17] | Cohort study | 116 | Netherlands Age not indicated Established epilepsy, recruited from three patient populations (general practices, university hospital and epilepsy centre) (HIC) |
(a) To gain insight into the direct and indirect costs of epilepsy care, and (b) To analyse the distribution of these costs by type of services for each patient group |
3 months (and 3 months retrospective) | - Direct costs - Indirect costs - Out-of-pocket costs |
| Langfitt et al. 2007 [18] | Cohort study | 68 | USA. Age not indicated Temporal lobe epilepsy patients (HIC) |
To determine whether health care costs change when seizures are controlled after surgery | 2 years (and 2 years pre-evaluation) | - Direct costs |
| Lindsten et al. 2002 [21] | Case–control study | 63 | Sweden 17 years of age or older Newly diagnosed unprovoked seizure in Vaesterbotten, northern Sweden (HIC) |
To investigate the socioeconomic prognosis after a newly diagnosed unprovoked epileptic seizure | 10 years | - Income - Source of income - Sickness periods - Incapacity rate - Vocational status - Education |
| Pato Pato et al. 2011[22] | Cohort study | 171 | Spain Over 14 years of age Epilepsy (HIC) |
To carry out an economic estimate of the direct, indirect and intangible costs of epilepsy | 6 months | - Direct costs - Indirect costs - Intangible costs |
| Tetto et al. 2002 [19] | Cohort study | 525 | Italy All ages NDE, SR, OS, NDR, DR and SC from 14 epilepsy centres (HIC) |
To compare the direct costs of epilepsy in patients referred with epilepsy of different severity and duration | 12 months | - Direct costs |
| Balabanov et al. 2007 [24] | Cohort study | 146 | Bulgaria 18 years of age and older recruited from an epilepsy centre Epilepsy (UMIC) |
To evaluate the effect of demographic and clinical factors on the quality of life and cost of treatment of epilepsy patients on monotherapy with carbamazepine and valproate | 12 months | - Direct costs - Indirect costs |
| Lagunju et al. 2011 [32] | Cohort study | 215 | Nigeria Children over 18 months recruited from a paediatric neurology clinic Epilepsy (LMIC) |
To estimate the total cost of childhood epilepsy and to provide essential information on the economic burden of childhood epilepsy in Nigeria | 12 months | - Direct costs - Out-of-pocket costs - Indirect costs |
| Doumbia-Outtara et al. 2010 [31] | Cohort study | 70 | Cote d’Ivoire Adults recruited from an inpatient unit within a hospital department of neurology (LMIC) |
To evaluate the efficacy and tolerance of anti-epileptic drugs and the financial cost of care | n/a | - Direct costs - Out-of-pocket costs - Indirect costs |
| Dongmo et al. 2003 [30] | Cohort study | 125 | Cameroon All ages recruited from a medical centre Epilepsy (LMIC) |
To evaluate the difficulties faced in the management of epileptic patients in their natural environment | 12 months | - Direct costs - Out-of-pocket costs |
| Haroon et al. 2012 [29] | Cohort study | 134 | India All ages recruited from a centre of neuroscience within a national hospital Epilepsy (LMIC) |
To evaluate the costs of active epilepsy and study the pattern of drug prescription and utilisation in epileptic patients | 4 months | - Direct costs - Out-of-pocket costs |
| Strzelcyck et al. 2013 [23] | Cohort study | 252 | Germany All ages recruited from an outpatient clinic within a university hospital Focal epilepsy (HIC) |
To estimate the direct and indirect costs of epilepsy and evaluate trends in the resource use of patients with active epilepsy. | 12 months | -Direct costs -Indirect costs |
| Lv et al. 2007 [28] | Cohort study | 533 | China Parents of children with epilepsy recruited from the outpatient clinic of a tertiary hospital epilepsy centre Epilepsy (UMIC) |
To assess the impact of childhood epilepsy on parental quality of life (QoL) and psychological health, and to investigate possible correlations between parental QoL, background variables and parental anxiety and depression | 12 months | - Direct costs - Income - Employment status |
| Vlasov et al. 2010 [27] | Cohort study | Russia Epilepsy (HIC) |
To evaluate the clinical-economic effectiveness of anti-epileptic drug (AED) therapy | 12 months | -Direct costs |
Abbreviations: DR drug-resistant seizures, NDE newly diagnosed epilepsy, NDR frequent non-drug-resistant seizures, OS occasional seizures, SR seizure remission, SC surgical
World Bank country classifications: HIC: high-income country; UMIC: upper-middle income country; LMIC: lower-middle-income country
(Accessible at: http://data.worldbank.org/about/country-and-lending-groups#Low_income)