Abstract
The purpose of this work is to estimate the costs associated with managing patients with MS in Panama and evaluating the impact of the disease on their health-related quality of life (HRQoL). Multicentric observational, retrospective, cross-sectional study. The costs were estimated from societal and patient perspectives and expressed in USD, 2015. The focus of the study is based on prevalence and on a "bottom-up" approach. To estimate the total cost per patient, annual reported use for each resource was multiplied by its unit cost. To evaluate HRQoL, patients completed the EQ-5D-3L questionnaire. 108 patients took part in the study. 82.41% were women with 44.78 (SD: 12.27) years. 61.11% presented mild (EDSS = 0-3.5), 25.93% moderate (EDSS = 3.5-6) and 12.96%, severe disability (EDSS≥6.5). The mean annual cost from the patient's perspective was estimated at 777.99 USD (SD: 1,741.45) per patient. The mean cost from a societal perspective was estimated at 23,803.21 USD (SD: 13,331.83) per patient. Disease-modifying therapies (DMT) accounted for the main component of the cost. A deterioration in HRQoL was observed as the disease advances and as disability increases, with mobility and usual activities being the areas most affected by its progression. From both perspective, the cost per MS patient in Panama is high. In addition to the high economic impact, MS also exerts a negative impact on patient HRQoL, which increases as the disease advances.