TY - JOUR
T1 - The Burden of Obesity in Saudi Arabia
T2 - A Real-World Cost-of-Illness Study
AU - Nagi, Mouaddh Abdulmalik
AU - Almalki, Ziyad Saeed
AU - Thavorncharoensap, Montarat
AU - Sangroongruangsri, Sermsiri
AU - Turongkaravee, Saowalak
AU - Chaikledkaew, Usa
AU - Alqahtani, Abdulhadi M.
AU - Alsharif, Lamis S.
AU - Alsubaihi, Ibrahim A.
AU - Alzarea, Abdulaziz I.
AU - Alsultan, Mohammed M.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2025 Nagi et al.
PY - 2025
Y1 - 2025
N2 - Background: The rising prevalence of obesity in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) poses a significant public health challenge. Estimates of the economic cost of obesity are crucial for prioritizing healthcare interventions, guiding policy choices, and justifying budget allocations aimed at reducing obesity prevalence. This study aimed to estimate the cost of obesity in the KSA in 2022. Methods: A prevalence-based cost-of-illness approach was used to determine the cost of obesity. This analysis encompasses 29 diseases, namely obesity and twenty-eight diseases attributable to obesity. Both direct and indirect costs were considered. The annual cost of treatment for each obesity-attributable disease was obtained from the hospital records of one tertiary hospital in the KSA. Data on direct non-medical costs were obtained from the patient survey. The human capital approach was used to estimate the indirect costs of morbidity and mortality. Results: The total economic burden of obesity (2022 values) was estimated at US$116.85 billion from a societal perspective and US $109.67 billion from a healthcare system perspective. From a societal perspective, the total direct medical cost accounted for the largest portion of the total cost (94%). In terms of direct medical costs, the cost of treating diseases attributable to obesity was substantially greater than the cost of treating obesity itself. According to the sensitivity analysis, the total cost ranged from 3.4% of the country’s Gross domestic product (GDP) when the unit cost of treatment was reduced by 74% to 9.5% of the country’s GDP when the prevalence of obesity and its comorbidities was reduced by 5%. Conclusion: Obesity imposes a substantial economic burden on the healthcare system and society in the KSA. Interventions aimed at promoting healthier lifestyles to reduce the prevalence and incidence of obesity and its comorbidities are highly warranted to alleviate the impact of obesity in the country.
AB - Background: The rising prevalence of obesity in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) poses a significant public health challenge. Estimates of the economic cost of obesity are crucial for prioritizing healthcare interventions, guiding policy choices, and justifying budget allocations aimed at reducing obesity prevalence. This study aimed to estimate the cost of obesity in the KSA in 2022. Methods: A prevalence-based cost-of-illness approach was used to determine the cost of obesity. This analysis encompasses 29 diseases, namely obesity and twenty-eight diseases attributable to obesity. Both direct and indirect costs were considered. The annual cost of treatment for each obesity-attributable disease was obtained from the hospital records of one tertiary hospital in the KSA. Data on direct non-medical costs were obtained from the patient survey. The human capital approach was used to estimate the indirect costs of morbidity and mortality. Results: The total economic burden of obesity (2022 values) was estimated at US$116.85 billion from a societal perspective and US $109.67 billion from a healthcare system perspective. From a societal perspective, the total direct medical cost accounted for the largest portion of the total cost (94%). In terms of direct medical costs, the cost of treating diseases attributable to obesity was substantially greater than the cost of treating obesity itself. According to the sensitivity analysis, the total cost ranged from 3.4% of the country’s Gross domestic product (GDP) when the unit cost of treatment was reduced by 74% to 9.5% of the country’s GDP when the prevalence of obesity and its comorbidities was reduced by 5%. Conclusion: Obesity imposes a substantial economic burden on the healthcare system and society in the KSA. Interventions aimed at promoting healthier lifestyles to reduce the prevalence and incidence of obesity and its comorbidities are highly warranted to alleviate the impact of obesity in the country.
KW - Saudi Arabia
KW - body mass index
KW - cost-of-illness
KW - economic burden
KW - obesity
UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/105001441455
U2 - 10.2147/CEOR.S504462
DO - 10.2147/CEOR.S504462
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:105001441455
SN - 1178-6981
VL - 17
SP - 233
EP - 246
JO - ClinicoEconomics and Outcomes Research
JF - ClinicoEconomics and Outcomes Research
ER -
