Abstract
Background: Detailed information on the cost burden of atrial fibrillation (AF) is limitedTo provide an up-to-date estimate of the national cost of AF, we conducted a retrospective, observational cohort study using administrative claims from the MarketScan Commercial and Medicare Supplemental research data bases, 2004 to 2006Methods and Results: Patients aged ≥20 years with ≥1 inpatient or ≥2 outpatient AF diagnoses in 2005 (first diagnosis=index) and ≥12 months' enrollment before and after index were selectedAF patients were propensity score-matched (1:1) with non-AF control subjectsMedical costs (2008 US$), including AF costs, other cardiovascular, and noncardiovascular costs, were examined over 1 year after indexNational incremental costs of AF were based on age-/sex-specific AF prevalence projections for 2010In total, 89 066 AF patients were matched to non-AF control subjectsOver 1 year, 37.5% of AF versus 17.5% of control subjects were hospitalized and 2.1% versus 0.1% died during hospitalizationFor AF versus control subjects, mean annual inpatient costs per patient were $7841 versus $2622 (incremental cost, $5218), outpatient medical costs were $9225 versus $5629 ($3596), and outpatient pharmacy costs were $3605 versus $3714 (-$109) (all P<0.001)The total incremental cost of AF was $8705 per patientThe national incremental cost of AF was $26.0 billion (AF, $6.0 billion; other cardiovascular, $9.9 billion; noncardiovascular, $10.1 billion)Cardiovascular costs were based on claims with a primary disease diagnosis and may be underestimatesConclusions: On the basis of current US age- and sex-specific prevalence data, the national incremental AF cost is estimated to range from $6.0 to $26.0 billion.