Utilization of care and costs of treatment in patients with osteoporosis A claims data analysis within the Bone Evaluation Study (BEST)

作者：Klein S^*; Gothe H; Haeussler B; Kless T; Linder R; Schmidt T; Steinle T; Verheyen F; Hadji P

来源：Osteologie, 2013, 22(4): 277-282.

• Osteoporosis
• fracture
• health care costs

Objectives: Data on diagnostic services, treatment and costs of osteoporosis are still insufficient. Therefore, this study aimed to determine the current utilization of medical care services and health care costs of osteoporosis patients in Germany. %26lt;br%26gt;Methods: We performed a retrospective analysis using anonymized claims data from 2006 to 2009 of a large statutory health insurance (Techniker Krankenkasse). The study included patients aged 50 years or older either diagnosed with osteoporosis or with an osteoporosis-related fracture or with a specific anti-osteoporotic treatment. Prescription prevalence, proportion of patients with osteodensitometry and costs of osteoporosis-related treatment were estimated. Costs were extrapolated to absolute numbers for the German population. %26lt;br%26gt;Results: The prescription prevalence of osteoporosis-specific and primary medication was 18% and 13%, respectively. 14% of fractured patients received osteodensitometry. In 2009, osteoporosis-related costs were 714 euro per osteoporotic patient, i.e. a total of 4.5 billion euro in Germany. Number and type of fractures had an major impact on costs. %26lt;br%26gt;Conclusions: Although we found that more insurants with osteoporosis were treated compared to a study using data from 2003, there is still a large proportion of the population with fractures and multiple fractures without medicinal treatment. This indicates a need for a substantial improvement in treatment of osteoporosis in order to reduce the assumed increase in fracture prevalence - due to the rise in life expectancy - and, thereby the fracture-related burden of disease for patients and the health care system.

• 出版日期2013