The economic impact of familial hypercholesterolemia on productivity

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Familial hypercholesterolemia (FH) is a common inherited cause for premature coronary artery disease that increases suffering and disability in affected people. However, the extent to which FH impacts work productivity at a population level is unclear. OBJECTIVE: We aimed to quantify the burden of heterozygous FH (HeFH) in terms of productivity-adjusted life years (PALYs) lost to HeFH in Australia. METHODS: A life-table model was constructed to quantify years of life and PALYs lived by Australians with HeFH (prevalence 1 in 300) and of working age (aged 20-69 years). Follow-up was simulated until age 70 years. The model was then resimulated, but assuming the cohort did not have H..