Hospital incidence, mortality and costs of Alzheimer’s disease in Spain: a retrospective multicenter study

ABSTRACT

Background

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the most common form of dementia. Its neurodegenerative nature and the lack of a curative treatment result in a substantial burden for healthcare systems and society. This study aimed to analyze the hospital incidence and mortality of AD in Spain and to evaluate patients’ use of healthcare resources and direct medical costs.

Methods

Admission records of patients with AD treated in hospitals in Spain between 2011 and 2016 were selected from a Spanish hospital discharge database.

Results

Records of 7,894 patients with diagnosed AD were analyzed. Hospital incidence was 3.7 per 10,000 persons over the study period, 2.9 and 4.4 for males and females, respectively. In-hospital mortality was 9.5%; both hospital incidence and in-hospital mortality increased over the study period. Mortality was principally associated with acute respiratory failure and other diseases of the respiratory system and heart failure. Annual medical costs of specialized care increased slightly during the study period, with a mean annual cost per patient of €4,969.

Conclusions

AD is responsible for an increasing proportion of hospitalizations in Spain and raising medical costs, which highlights the importance of early detection and optimized care.

KEYWORDS:

• Alzheimer’s disease
• incidence
• mortality
• medical costs
• Spain

Acknowledgments

Not applicable.

Author contributions

JD contributed to the investigation by analyzing and interpreting the burden associated to Alzheimer’s disease in Spain and was a major contribution in the intellectual content revision. AM analyzed the current situation of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease in Spain, interpreted the statistical data and was a major contributor in writing the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Ethics approval and consent to participate

Ethics committee approval and consent were not required for this study.

Data availability statement

The data that support the findings of this study is available from the Spanish Ministry of Health via the Unit of Health Care Information and Statistics (Spanish Institute of Health Information) for researchers who meet the criteria for access to confidential data at https://www.mscbs.gob.es/estadEstudios/sanidadDatos/home.htm

Disclosure statement

The authors have no relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript. This includes employment, consultancies, honoraria, stock ownership or options, expert testimony, grants or patents received or pending, or royalties.

Reviewers disclosure

Peer reviewers on this manuscript have no relevant financial relationships or otherwise to disclose.

Additional information

Funding

This paper was not funded.