Atopic eczema is one of the most common non-communicable inflammatory diseases. Still, its impact on patients’ lives is often underestimated and ignored. In 2018, we studied the impact severe atopic eczema has in daily life, and published “Itching for Life: Quality of Life and costs for people living with severe atopic eczema in Europe” multi-lingual report with the results, including the emotional consequences it brings and its economic aspects.
Thanks to a multi-country study with 1,189 severe atopic eczema patients, we found that the average annual spending in healthcare is 927 EUR per patient. Emollients and moisturizers are the most expensive products, followed by medications and costs for doctors and hospitals.
Besides this direct costs, atopic eczema also leads to productivity loss: One in four participants has missed at least one week at work because of the disease.
The new clinical report ‘Out-of-pocket Costs for Individuals with Atopic Eczema: A Cross-sectional Study in Nine European Countries’ has been published in the February edition of the Advances in Dermatology and Venerology Journal, accessible here.