Health-economic burden of dementia in South Korea

This population-based study estimated the health-economic costs of dementia from a societal perspective using nationally representative data from 2015 to 2019 and analysed recent trends in Korea.

The prevalence of and mortality due to dementia were calculated using the National Health Insurance claims data and population census. The health-economic burden due to dementia was estimated using a prevalence-based approach, including the number of dementia patients and the number of deaths resulting from dementia during 2015-2019. The health-economic burden was presented separately as the national burden and the burden per capita by summing the direct and indirect costs.

Between 2015 and 2019, the prevalence of dementia among the elderly aged 65 years or older based on clinical diagnosis increased from 5.9 to 7.3%, with approximately 588000 elderly dementia patients in Korea. The total health-economic cost of dementia increased by about 1.5 times in the last 5 years and was estimated to be about USD 4218 million. Direct costs were 52.0% in 2019, and the proportion has been steadily increasing over the past 5 years; indirect costs accounted for 48.0% of the total burden, mainly from family members and caregivers. The health-economic cost per capita due to dementia was approximately USD 6957.

The burden of dementia in Korea is expected to considerably increase alongside the elderly population in the future. Health policies addressing the prevention and management of dementia should be prioritised.