ABSTRACT
Cost of illness (COI) or burden of illness (BOI) measures the economic burden of disease and illness on society. They can take either a prevalence- or incidence-based approach. COI or BOI lays the foundation on which the different types of analyses that are used to make decisions in allocation of healthcare resources are framed. They typically only examine direct costs. However, as indirect costs, that is, productivity, often account for a substantial portion of the burden, these should be assessed as part of the COI computation whenever possible. The major limitation of COI studies is that they neither consider the effectiveness of treatment, nor the ease with which that treatment may ameliorate the burden of disease on society or the individual. Thus, these studies should be performed in conjunction with cost-effectiveness analyses. Examples using atopic dermatitis, human papillomavirus vaccine, asthma and arrhythmia are shown.
