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Medical Care Costs Associated with Genital Warts for Commercially Insured US Patients

  • Original Research Article
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Abstract

Introduction

Genital warts are caused by infection with human papillomavirus (HPV) and are associated with significant morbidity. Primary prevention of genital warts is possible through HPV vaccination, but vaccination rates remain low in the USA. When deciding to implement HPV vaccination programs, public health officials and policy makers rely on cost-effectiveness studies that accurately reflect costs associated with morbidity and mortality. However, previous information on the cost of treating genital warts was outdated.

Objectives

We estimated the mean direct medical care costs associated with genital warts in the USA.

Methods

This was a retrospective case–control study of patients diagnosed with genital warts and matched controls. We used commercial healthcare claims data from 2011 through 2014 to estimate total 1- and 2-year costs from date of diagnosis. We used a generalized linear model to identify factors associated with monthly costs.

Results

We identified 34,686 eligible cases of genital warts during the period 2011–2014. The first 2-year mean direct medical cost differences between cases and controls were US$6737 for the USA. Costs were significantly higher in the first 3 months following diagnosis and were higher among older individuals, women, those with co-morbidities or psychiatric illnesses, and those located in the south and southwest USA.

Conclusions

The mean direct cost of treating genital warts is approximately US$6700 in the first 2 years after diagnosis in the USA. These data can assist policy makers in decisions with respect to allocation of resources to implement HPV vaccine programs.

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Acknowledgements

Editorial assistance was provided by Sunita Patterson of MD Anderson Cancer Center’s Department of Scientific Publications.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Head and Neck Surgery, Division of Surgery, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, 1515 Holcombe Blvd, Houston, TX, 77030, USA

    Kristina R. Dahlstrom & Shuangshuang Fu

  2. Department of Epidemiology, Human Genetics & Environmental Sciences, School of Public Health, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, 1200 Pressler St., Houston, TX, 77030, USA

    Shuangshuang Fu

  3. Department of Biostatistics, School of Public Health, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, 1200 Pressler St., Houston, TX, 77030, USA

    Wenyaw Chan

  4. Department of Gynecologic Oncology and Reproductive Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, 1515 Holcombe Blvd, Houston, TX, 77030, USA

    Zeena Shelal & Lois M. Ramondetta

  5. Department of Management, Policy, and Community Health, School of Public Health, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, 1200 Pressler St., Houston, TX, 77030, USA

    David R. Lairson

Authors
  1. Kristina R. Dahlstrom
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  2. Shuangshuang Fu
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  3. Wenyaw Chan
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  4. Zeena Shelal
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  5. Lois M. Ramondetta
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  6. David R. Lairson
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Contributions

Study concept and design: Lairson and Wen; data analysis: Lairson, Wen, and Fu; all authors participated in the interpretation of data and drafting, critical review, and final approval of the manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to David R. Lairson.

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Funding

This study was supported by generous philanthropic contributions, including a contribution from the Lyda Hill Foundation to The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center’s Moon Shots Program, and was accomplished within the Oropharynx Program at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center and funded in part through the Stiefel Oropharyngeal Research Fund.

Conflict of Interest

Kristina R. Dahlstrom, Shuangshuang Fu, Wenyaw Chan, Zeena Shelal, Lois M. Ramondetta, and David R. Lairson have no conflict of interests to disclose.

Ethical Approval

For this type of study formal consent is not required.

Data Availability Statement

The MarketScan claims data are available from Truven Health Analytics, now part of IBM Watson Health, with access fees subject to the level of research funding. Contact Dr Lairson for software code requests.

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Dahlstrom, K.R., Fu, S., Chan, W. et al. Medical Care Costs Associated with Genital Warts for Commercially Insured US Patients. PharmacoEconomics 36, 1355–1365 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40273-018-0691-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40273-018-0691-9

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