Do Statins Reduce the Health and Health Care Costs of Obesity?

ABSTRACT: CONTEXT:Obesity impacts both individual health and, given its high prevalence, total health care spending. However, as medical technology evolves, health outcomes for a number of obesity-related illnesses improve. This article examines whether medical innovation can mitigate the adverse health and spending associated with obesity, using statins as a case study. Because of the relationship between obesity and hypercholesterolaemia, statins play an important role in the medical management of obese individuals and the prevention of costly obesity-related sequelae. METHODS:Using well-recognized estimates of the health impact of statins and the Future Elderly Model (FEM)-an established dynamic microsimulation model of the health of Americans aged over 50 years-we estimate the changes in life expectancy, functional status and health care costs of obesity due to the introduction and widespread use of statins. RESULTS:Life expectancy gains of statins are estimated to be 5-6 % greater for obese individuals than for healthy-weight individuals, but most of these additional gains are associated with some level of disability. Considering both medical spending and the value of quality-adjusted life-years, statins do not significantly alter the costs of class 1 and 2 obesity (body mass index [BMI] ?30 and ?35 kg/m(2), respectively) and they increase the costs of class 3 obesity (BMI ?40 kg/m(2)) by 1.2 %. CONCLUSIONS:Although statins are very effective medications for lowering the risk of obesity-associated illnesses, they do not significantly reduce the costs of obesity.

SUBMITTER: Gaudette E 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4490078 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature