Neurology 2022 03 15;98(12):e1204-e1215. Epub 2022 Feb 15.
From the Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation (E.W., A.G., G.T., B.H.S.) and Leong Centre for Healthy Children (A.G.), University of Toronto; Diagnostic Imaging (E.W.), Division of Neurology (E.W., O.C.S.), Neurosciences and Mental Health (L.D., O.Y.), Division of Pediatric Medicine (A.G.), and Department of Neurosurgery (J.R.), Hospital for Sick Children; ICES (E.W., A.G., B.H.S.); Toronto Health Economics and Technology Assessment (THETA) Collaborative (G.T., B.H.S.), University Health Network; and Public Health Ontario (B.H.S.), Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Background And Objectives: Improvement in seizure control after epilepsy surgery could lead to lower health care resource use and costs, but it is uncertain whether this could offset the high costs related to surgery. This study aimed to evaluate phase-specific and cumulative long-term health care costs of surgery compared to medical therapy in children with drug-resistant epilepsy from the health care payer perspective.
Methods: Children who were evaluated for epilepsy surgery and treated with surgery or medical therapy from 2003 to 2018 at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto were identified from chart review and linked to their health administrative databases in Ontario, Canada. Read More