Healthcare Costs due to Dizziness/ Vertigo in Korea: Analyses Using the Public Data of Health Insurance Review & Assessment Service
10.3346/jkms.2024.39.e214
- Author:
Hyo-Jung KIM
1
;
Jae-Ryun LEE
;
Hyejin LEE
;
Ji-Soo KIM
Author Information
1. Biomedical Research Institute, Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, Seongnam, Korea
- Publication Type:Original Article
- From:Journal of Korean Medical Science
2024;39(29):e214-
- CountryRepublic of Korea
- Language:English
-
Abstract:
Background:Dizziness/vertigo is one of the most common symptoms for which people seek healthcare. However, the healthcare expenditure attributable to dizziness/vertigo in South Korea remains poorly understood. We investigated the healthcare costs due to six major disorders causing dizziness/vertigo using claims data.
Methods:The healthcare costs were evaluated using all the claims data submitted to the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service from January 1 to December 31, 2022. The six major vestibular disorders included for analysis were benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV), psychogenic/persistent postural perceptual dizziness (PPPD), vascular vertigo/dizziness (VVD), vestibular migraine (VM), Meniere’s disease (MD), and vestibular neuritis (VN).
Results:During the 1-year study period, 4.1% of adults aged 20 or older visited hospitals due to dizziness/vertigo in South Korea. Compared to the general population, the patients with dizziness/vertigo were more often elderly, female, and residents of small towns. The total healthcare cost for the six major vestibular disorders was ₩547.8 billion (approximately $406.5 million). BPPV incurred the highest annual healthcare cost (₩183.5 billion, 33.5%), followed by VVD (₩158.8 billion, 29.0%), MD (₩82.2 billion, 15.0%), psychogenic/PPPD (₩60.3 billion, 11.0%), VN (₩32.9 billion, 6.0%), and VM (₩30.1 billion, 5.5%). The mean healthcare cost per hospital visit due to dizziness/vertigo was ₩96,524 (95% confidence interval, ₩96,194–₩96,855), 30% higher than the average (₩73,948) of the overall healthcare cost per hospital visit over the same period.
Conclusion:Owing to higher healthcare costs for dizziness/vertigo and increased prevalence of dizziness/vertigo in the aged population, healthcare costs due to dizziness/vertigo will increase rapidly in South Korea. Thus, a guideline for cost-effective management of dizziness/ vertigo should be established to reduce the healthcare costs due to these common symptoms.
