Health-economic burden of dementia in South Korea

Abstract

Background This population-based study estimated the health-economic costs of dementia from a societal perspective using nationally representative data from 2015 to 2019 and analysed recent trends in Korea. Methods The prevalence of and mortality due to dementia were calculated using the National Health Insurance claims data and population census. The health-economic burden due to dementia was estimated using a prevalence-based approach, including the number of dementia patients and the number of deaths resulting from dementia during 2015–2019. The health-economic burden was presented separately as the national burden and the burden per capita by summing the direct and indirect costs. Results Between 2015 and 2019, the prevalence of dementia among the elderly aged 65 years or older based on clinical diagnosis increased from 5.9 to 7.3%, with approximately 588000 elderly dementia patients in Korea. The total health-economic cost of dementia increased by about 1.5 times in the last 5 years and was estimated to be about USD 4218 million. Direct costs were 52.0% in 2019, and the proportion has been steadily increasing over the past 5 years; indirect costs accounted for 48.0% of the total burden, mainly from family members and caregivers. The health-economic cost per capita due to dementia was approximately USD 6957. Conclusions The burden of dementia in Korea is expected to considerably increase alongside the elderly population in the future. Health policies addressing the prevention and management of dementia should be prioritised.

Potentially Inappropriate Medication Use in Patients with Dementia

“…This high prevalence of DPIM use in a relatively large quantity ( Table 3 ) might result from insufficient knowledge of clinicians in geriatric pharmacotherapy and extremely busy clinical setting which significantly limits time commitment to appropriate medication therapy [ 39 , 40 ]. Considering the rapid increase in the global prevalence of dementia projected to be >15% of geriatric patients by 2050 [ 31 ], DPIM use might further accelerate dementia progression [ 35 , 36 , 41 ], contributing to substantial dementia-related burden to the society as well as to the healthcare systems.…”

“…However, little is known regarding DPIM use in patients with dementia in Korea. Considering the variability in demographic, clinical, and sociocultural aspects associated with drug therapy and disease states across different countries, specific data regarding the epidemiology of DPIMs in each country may be helpful for establishing optimal strategies to prevent excessive use of DPIMs [ 31 ]. Therefore, the aims of this study were to investigate the prevalence of using at least one DPIM for ambulatory patients with dementia of any cause in a tertiary, university-affiliated hospital in Korea and to identify factors associated with prescribing at least one DPIM in patients with dementia.…”

Dementia Epidemiology Fact Sheet 2022

“…These projected population figures suggest that dementia will become an increasingly significant challenge. Dementia has a profound impact at both individual and societal levels, such that the estimated health-economic cost per capita for dementia in Korea was approximately US$ 6,957 in 2019 [ 4 ].…”

Association between community-level social trust and the risk of dementia: A retrospective cohort study in the Republic of Korea

“…In 2019, there were 57.4 (95% CI 50.4–65.1) million cases of dementia worldwide ( 2 ). By 2050, the Republic of Korea is expected to have 3.02 million cases of dementia among people over 65 years of age, up from 830,000 cases in 2020 ( 3 ). The typical risk factors of dementia are biological factors and lifestyle behaviors.…”