Abstracts

Epilepsy imposes a significant burden on society. The goal of this study was to estimate health resource utilization (HRU) over a one year period in patients with epilepsy in a large Canadian health region., Inpatient, emergency and physician services administrative data claims were used to identify epilepsy cases in 2001. Epilepsy cases were then linked to the provincial health care insurance plan registry to identify Calgary health region residents. Demographic and HRU variables [i.e. outpatient physician visits and billings, emergency room (ER) visits, and hospitalizations] were defined using the administrative data. Logistic regression was used to determine whether there were any sociodemographic variables associated with higher HRU., We identified 1431 patients with a mean age of 37.5 [plusmn] 17.3 years (range 2.5-88). Of these patients, 96% saw a family physician or specialist, 12% were hospitalized and 8% visited the ER within one year. Gender, social welfare support status or rural vs urban residence were not associated with type or level of HRU. However, children ([lt]18 y.o.) were more likely than adults (age [gt]=18 years) to see a neurologist (adjusted odds ratio (OR): 1.7, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.3-2.3), visit the ER (adjusted OR: 4.9, 95% CI: 3.2=7.4) or be hospitalized (adjusted OR 2.9, 95% CI: 2.0-4.3)., We demonstrated a substantial rate of physician visits, hospitalizations and emergency services use among patients with epilepsy, as well as substantial differences in HRU between children and adults. The high HSU among children may be related to timing of diagnosis. In the initial years of diagnosis, patients may use more resources than in the subsequent years. This research question needs further investigations using detailed clinical information.,