HealthSWEDE: costs with sublingual immunotherapy—a Swedish questionnaire study

• Research
• Open Access
• 
  

• Petter Olsson, 
• Carl Skröder, 
• Lars Ahlbeck, 
• Frida Hjalte, 
• Karl-Olof Welin, 
• Ulla Westin, 
• Morgan Andersson, 
• Cecilia Ahlström-Emanuelsson & 
• Lars-Olaf Cardell 

Allergy, Asthma & Clinical Immunology volume 17, Article number: 55 (2021) 

• details

Abstract

Background

The aim of this cross-sectional survey was to compare the health-economic consequences for allergic rhinitis (AR) patients treated with sublingual Immunotherapy (SLIT) in terms of direct and indirect costs with a reference population of patients receiving standard of care pharmacological therapy.

Methods

Primary objective was to analyse the health-economic consequences of SLIT for grass pollen allergy in Sweden vs reference group waiting for subcutaneous immunotherapy (SCIT). A questionnaire was mailed to two groups of AR patients.

Results

The questionnaire was distributed to 548 patients, 307 with SLIT and 241 in reference group (waiting for SCIT). Response rate was 53.8%. Mean annual costs were higher for reference patients than SLIT group; € 3907 (SD 4268) vs € 2084 (SD 1623) p < 0.001. Mean annual direct cost was higher for SLIT-patients, € 1191 (SD 465) than for reference, € 751 (SD 589) p < 0.001. Mean annual indirect costs for combined absenteeism and presenteeism were lower for patients treated with SLIT, € 912 (SD 1530), than for reference, € 3346 (SD 4120) p < 0.001, with presenteeism as main driver.

Conclusions

SLIT seems to be a cost-beneficial way to treat seasonal AR. This information might be used to guide future recommendations.

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