Multiple sclerosis in Ireland : costs, health-related quality of life and cost effectiveness of disease-modifying therapies

Abstract

This study aimed to evaluate the economic and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) burden of multiple sclerosis (MS) in Ireland, and to develop a framework for assessing the cost effectiveness of disease-modifying therapies (DMT). In achieving these aims, a cost-of-illness (Col) study estimated the direct and indirect costs of MS from the Irish healthcare payer and societal perspectives; the relationship between MS disability and HRQoL was explored; and the relative efficacy of DMT was assessed by network meta-analysis (NMA). Each of these elements was integrated into a decision-analytic model which was developed to estimate the cost effectiveness of DMT in Ireland.