Estimating the financial burden of asthma among young adults in Sweden

Introduction: The financial burden of asthma in young adults remains sparsely investigated. Our study aims to estimate the Swedish national financial burden of asthma in adults aged 18–45 using nationwide databases. Methods: The financial burden of asthma in Sweden was estimated using the Swedish burden of disease, cost of medical care, and sick leave utilization data from 2022, together with healthcare consumption estimates from a nationwide burden of asthma study (data from 2014 to 2018). Costs were calculated as total costs and excess costs compared to matched controls. Results: The total annual financial burden for individuals with asthma was €3,572 per patient, divided into primary care (€929), secondary care (€1,137), medicine (€605), and sick leave transfers (€902). When compared to an age-, sex-, cohabitation-status-, and residence-matched control group, an annual excess cost of €2,299 (2,288–2,310) per patient with asthma was found. When stratified according to disease severity, patients at GINA 2020 Step 2 incurred the lowest annual cost at €2,916 (2,960–3,092), whereas GINA 2020 Step 5 represented the highest annual cost at €6,697 (6,559–6,793). Pooling the total mean costs for all young Swedish adults with ICS-treated asthma (n = 88,898) revealed an excess annual financial burden of €204,375,739, of which 39% (€ 80,150,137) were sick leave transfers. Conclusion: Asthma in Sweden is associated with a substantial financial burden from both direct costs and asthma-related sick leave compared to matched controls, and the pooled excess burden of ICS-treated asthma in young adults exceeded €200,000,000 annually.