GLOBAL ECONOMIC AND HUMANISTIC BURDEN OF SEVERE HYPERTRIGLYCERIDEMIA: A SYSTEMATIC LITERATURE REVIEW
Author(s)
Nihar R Desai, MD, MPH1, Robert S. Rosenson, MD2, chaoling feng, PhD3, Nathalie Laura Kertesz, PhD3, Puneet Kumar, MPharm4, Mo Amin, PhD, MD5, Sachin Harchand, MPharm6, Gerald Watts, MD, PhD7.
1Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA, 2Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA, 3Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals, Pasadena, CA, USA, 4Syneos Health, London, United Kingdom, 5Syneos Health Consulting, Milton, ON, Canada, 6Syneos Health, Gurdaspur, India, 7University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia.
1Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA, 2Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA, 3Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals, Pasadena, CA, USA, 4Syneos Health, London, United Kingdom, 5Syneos Health Consulting, Milton, ON, Canada, 6Syneos Health, Gurdaspur, India, 7University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia.
OBJECTIVES: Severe hypertriglyceridemia (sHTG) is associated with increased risk of acute pancreatitis (AP) and may impose a substantial economic and patient health burden.
METHODS: A systematic literature search across PubMed, EMBASE, and supplementary sources was conducted to synthesize evidence on costs, healthcare resource utilization (HRU), and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in sHTG [triglycerides (TG)≥500 mg/dL] from 2020 to present. All costs were inflation-adjusted to 2026 USD.
RESULTS: Of 1,381 identified records, 37 cost/HRU and 3 HRQoL studies were included. Compared with patients with normal TG (TG<150 mg/dL), patients with sHTG (TG≥880 mg/dL) incurred approximately two-fold higher annual costs ($19,378-$23,260 vs. $10,437) and greater HRU (hospitalization events: 0.15-0.2 vs. 0.07/year). In the U.S., AP further amplified this burden, driven by AP-related complications and sequelae, with incremental annual costs ranging from $43,334 (AP of unknown cause, reflecting underrecognized sHTG) to $73,994 (sHTG-associated AP based on TG value closest to index event). Variation in estimates was driven by heterogeneous definitions and identification approaches, including TG thresholds (≥500-≥1000 mg/dL), single-point TG measurements, or diagnostic codification . Globally, HTG-AP also showed higher HRU than other AP causes (e.g., biliary, alcoholic), including longer hospital stays (4.5-18 vs. 4.2-9 days), ICU stays (9-12.5 vs. 4.6-6.5 days), and higher ICU admission rates (9-38% vs. 6.1-16.4%), with variation across regions. There was substantial HRQoL burden during AP onset (EQ-5D-5L: -0.115; EQ-VAS: 19) and persistent post-episode burden (EQ-5D: 0.67; VAS 64.1 vs. population norms). Recurrent AP further worsened HRQoL, with higher pain/discomfort (24% vs. 6%, p=0.01) and lower EQ-VAS scores (76 vs. 82, p=0.02).
CONCLUSIONS: sHTG imposes substantial economic and personal burden but estimates vary widely and are likely underestimated owing to inconsistent disease definitions and detection methods. Major complications and patient-reported outcomes also remain underdiagnosed, highlighting the need for increasing awareness and upskilling clinicians in the diagnosis and implications of sHTG.
METHODS: A systematic literature search across PubMed, EMBASE, and supplementary sources was conducted to synthesize evidence on costs, healthcare resource utilization (HRU), and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in sHTG [triglycerides (TG)≥500 mg/dL] from 2020 to present. All costs were inflation-adjusted to 2026 USD.
RESULTS: Of 1,381 identified records, 37 cost/HRU and 3 HRQoL studies were included. Compared with patients with normal TG (TG<150 mg/dL), patients with sHTG (TG≥880 mg/dL) incurred approximately two-fold higher annual costs ($19,378-$23,260 vs. $10,437) and greater HRU (hospitalization events: 0.15-0.2 vs. 0.07/year). In the U.S., AP further amplified this burden, driven by AP-related complications and sequelae, with incremental annual costs ranging from $43,334 (AP of unknown cause, reflecting underrecognized sHTG) to $73,994 (sHTG-associated AP based on TG value closest to index event). Variation in estimates was driven by heterogeneous definitions and identification approaches, including TG thresholds (≥500-≥1000 mg/dL), single-point TG measurements, or diagnostic codification . Globally, HTG-AP also showed higher HRU than other AP causes (e.g., biliary, alcoholic), including longer hospital stays (4.5-18 vs. 4.2-9 days), ICU stays (9-12.5 vs. 4.6-6.5 days), and higher ICU admission rates (9-38% vs. 6.1-16.4%), with variation across regions. There was substantial HRQoL burden during AP onset (EQ-5D-5L: -0.115; EQ-VAS: 19) and persistent post-episode burden (EQ-5D: 0.67; VAS 64.1 vs. population norms). Recurrent AP further worsened HRQoL, with higher pain/discomfort (24% vs. 6%, p=0.01) and lower EQ-VAS scores (76 vs. 82, p=0.02).
CONCLUSIONS: sHTG imposes substantial economic and personal burden but estimates vary widely and are likely underestimated owing to inconsistent disease definitions and detection methods. Major complications and patient-reported outcomes also remain underdiagnosed, highlighting the need for increasing awareness and upskilling clinicians in the diagnosis and implications of sHTG.
Conference/Value in Health Info
2026-11, ISPOR Europe 2026, Vienna, Austria
Value in Health, Volume 29, Issue 12S
Code
EE157
Topic
Economic Evaluation, Patient-Centered Research, Study Approaches
Topic Subcategory
Cost/Cost of Illness/Resource Use Studies
Disease
Cardiovascular Disorders (including MI, Stroke, Circulatory), No Additional Disease & Conditions/Specialized Treatment Areas