Total costs and predictors of costs in individuals with early inflammatory polyarthritis: a community-based prospective study

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Abstract
Objective. To estimate the health service, non‐health service and total costs and predictors of costs in individuals with early inflammatory polyarthritis (IP). Methods. We conducted a prospective longitudinal study over a 6‐month period. The participants were a random sample of 133 individuals who had enrolled with the community‐based Norfolk Arthritis Register (NOAR) database between 1994 and 1999. The main outcome measures were the mean (per person) 6‐month health service cost, non‐health‐service cost and total cost associated with IP. Results. One hundred and fifteen of the 133 individuals who were recruited into the study completed 6 months of follow‐up. The mean 6‐month total cost was estimated to be £2800 per person, of which 14% was health service costs and the remainder non‐health‐service costs. Higher total costs were associated with lower health status and rheumatoid factor positivity. Conclusions. Early IP has a considerable impact on both the health‐care system and, more importantly, society. Non‐health‐service costs (i.e. costs incurred by the individual with the disease, their family and friends) account for a substantial proportion (86%) of the total costs associated with early IP.

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