Economic burden of acute coronary syndrome in South Korea: a national survey

Background: Acute coronary syndrome (ACS) is highly prevalent in Korea and is the third-leading cause of death in Korea; however, the economic cost of ACS on Korean society has not been investigated. This study examined the economic effect of ACS on the Korean population during the period 2004 to 2009. Methods: The analysis used the cost of illness (COI) framework. Data on direct medical costs, direct non-medical costs, and productivity loss related to ACS morbidity and mortality were included. The Korean National Health Insurance Corporation's claim database was used to obtain data on annual healthcare utilization and expenditures for the entire South Korean population. By using a data mining technique, we identified healthcare claims with ACS-related disease codes. Costs were estimated by using a macro-costing method. Results: In 2009, the prevalence of ACS in Korea was 6.4 persons per 1,000 population members and the associated mortality rate was 20.2 persons per 100,000 population members. The total cost of ACS in 2009 was USD 918.2 million. Of the total, direct medical cost was USD 425.3 million, direct non-medical cost was USD 11.4 million, and cost associated with morbidity and mortality was USD 481.5 million. Conclusions: The results show that the total cost of ACS to the Korean society is high. Early and effective management of ACS is required to reduce ACS-associated mortality and morbidity. We suggest that further research be undertaken to determine ways to reduce the economic effects of ACS and its treatment.