OBJECTIVES: To describe the economic burden of Sjögren's disease (SjD), including direct and indirect costs, and healthcare resource utilization (HCRU).

METHODS: Embase, MEDLINE®, and EconLit were searched from database inception to September 27, 2022 for English-language studies reporting direct costs (e.g., diagnosis or treatment costs), indirect costs (e.g., lost income due to illness-related work absences), or HCRU for adults with SjD.

RESULTS: Of 7,121 abstracts identified, 24 studies were included. Most studies were cross-sectional (number of studies [n]=12) or retrospective cohort studies (n=11) conducted in the United States (US; n=13) or Europe (n=7). Sample size ranged from 55–69,239 participants (median: 924). Data were collected from hospital databases, surveys, claims databases, or electronic health records. Total mean direct costs of SjD within the US ranged from 4,878–27,526 USD/patient/year (n=4). Within Europe, total mean/median direct costs/patient/year in the United Kingdom (UK), Switzerland, and Sweden were 2,188GBP, 2,752CHF (out-of-pocket), and 23,735–38,781SEK (n=1 each). Mean total healthcare costs/patient/year in France ranged from 5,836–9,618EUR for SjD patients, and 8,905–13,271EUR for SjD patients with another autoimmune disease. Indirect costs were scarcely reported overall. Mean urgent care visits ranged from 0.19–1.7 visits/patient/year within the US (n=4); inpatient visits ranged from 0.1–1.4 (n=8) in the US and 1.2 in Sweden (n=1). Mean dentist visits ranged from 2.3 (n=1; Sweden) to 4.0 (n=1; US) visits/patient/year. Various healthcare specialists were utilized 6-12 months post-diagnosis including rheumatologists (52.2%, 97.2%), family practitioners (48.7%, 85.1%), internal medicine practitioners (46.8%, 46.3%), obstetricians/gynecologists (30.9%, 55.6%), dermatologists (22.7%, 37.7%), and ophthalmologists (19.2%, 81.7%) within the US and Germany, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS: SjD patients experience significant economic burden including substantial costs related to diagnosis, treatment, and specialist visits. Data on indirect costs is lacking, yielding a gap in understanding the full impact of SjD on patients’ lives. There is a need for improved therapies for managing SjD and reducing the economic burden.