Individual and Societal Economic Burden of Chronic Rhinosinusitis with or Without Nasal Polyps

Background/Objectives: Chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) with nasal polyps (CRSwNP) or without NP (CRSsNP) are common upper airway diseases with major impact on healthcare utilization. Little is known about the overall national financial burden of CRS. We aimed to assess the excess financial burden of CRS from a countrywide perspective. Methods: Annual expenditure from healthcare, welfare transfers and foregone income was retrieved from national databases, annualized and compared to matched healthy comparators. Results: Of the 303,475 patients included with CRS (mean age 51, 55% female), 18,142 were subclassified as CRSsNP (24%) or CRSwNP (76%). For CRS patients, annual excess healthcare costs were €1315 (1296–1333) compared to comparators. Patients with CRS earned €1356 (1230–1479) less annually compared to comparators. Patients with CRS of working age (18–64 years) had excess welfare transfers (€816 (782–850) compared to comparators, driven by sick leave and disability. Increases in healthcare costs were seen for patients with CRSwNP (€5406 (4860–6012) annually) compared to CRSsNP (€4945 (4293–5696)) driven by increases in CRS-related costs. Total societal burden for the entire cohort was €686,052,898, of which systemic corticosteroid exposure-related conditions represented €20,332,825. Excess welfare transfers represented €174,394,048 annually. Conclusions: Chronic rhinosinusitis is associated with a significant financial burden, both in terms of societal healthcare and welfare expenditure and patients’ personal finances due to lost income.