Osteoporosis to cost €38.5bn in Europe’s ‘big 5’ by 2025
The study, published in the Archives of Osteoporosis, notes that in 2010 there were 34,000 bone fracture-related deaths in the five biggest EU economies – Germany, the UK, France, Spain and Italy. Sweden was also included.
Half of those fractures were hip fractures and the report estimated that all fractures added up to a loss in quality-adjusted life years (QALY) of about 850,000.
The report highlights pharma and other interventions but notes patients only receive preventative advice about nutrients like calcium and vitamin D that have been backed by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) to boost bone health and even reduce the likelihood of falling in the elderly when patients were receiving, “bone protective therapy”.
Increasing bone mass density testing is another intervention the report recommends.
It noted that that the healthcare cost exceeds that of for migraine, stroke, multiple sclerosis, and Parkinson’s disease, and registers at about the same level as rheumatoid arthritis.
Fracture rates will rise by 29% to 3.2 trillion in 2025.
“The assessment of best practices in prevention and treatment and the adoption of these across countries
can potentially result in significant reductions in the burden of osteoporosis,” the authors wrote.
They continued: “In the few health economic analysis that have been published so far the results have shown that osteoporosis management programmes are a cost-effective intervention for the prevention of fractures. More evidence is needed both on the clinical outcomes and the cost-effectiveness of these programmes; however, it is likely that they will become more widely adopted in the future.”
Source:
Archives of Osteoporosis
DOI 10.1007/s11657-011-0060-1
‘Osteoporosis: Burden, health care provision and opportunities in the European Union’
Authors: O Ström, F Borgström, JA Kanis, J Compston, C Cooper, E V McCloskey, B Jönsson.
