Disease burden of recurrent cystitis infections on YOU and the healthcare systems

Burden on YOU

1 in 2 women of all ages will experience at least one episode of cystitis during their lifetime

Of these women, almost 1 in 3 will suffer from at least one recurrent cystitis

Anonymous, self-administered web-based survey
Aim: to evaluate the social & economic burden of recurrent cystitis as well as impact on quality of life
5 countries involved (Germany, Switzerland, Poland, Russia, Italy)
1,941 adult women who had experienced recurrent cystitis and were currently affected by acute cystitis (1,275) or within 4 weeks of study entry (666)

Women…

…stated their intimate relations were negatively influenced by the disease

Women…

…suffered cystitis very often or often after sexual intercourse

Premenopausal women…

…reported being socially handicapped

The sudden, unforeseeable, and distressing nature of painful cystitis episodes often causes patients anxiety.

The resulting social handicap is known to induce feelings of self-devaluation or culpability, which can lead to clinical symptoms of depression
Mental health scores are below average in up to 81% of women, regardless of the presence of an acute infection or not
Up to 71% of women suffering from rUTIs exhibited some degree of depression at baseline

Performed in 5 countries by individuals:

Burden of UTIs

In the US, cystitis are responsible for 7 million medical visits a year, including 2 million for cystitis alone, with a total estimated cost of $3.5 billion.
In Europe, patients visit the doctors 3 times / year, costing an estimated €1.5 billion.
A mean of 3 days per year of sick leave are due to cystitis in Europe.

Burden of antibiotics

80.3% of patients suffering from cystitis had been treated at least once with antibiotics for UTIs.
In the US, 3 million patients suffering from cystitis are treated with antibiotics.
Individuals who had to change antibiotic treatment due to lack of efficacy was high (up to 53.2%).

Doctors tend to see cases of cystitis in isolation and don’t see the recurrences, however, for patients even one recurrence is too much. ^RECAP

Patient's perspective

100% of women surveyed were willing to try any sort of prophylactic measure in place of antibiotics
For example, 52% were willing to try immunostimulants
At time of consultation, 74% of women had even already undertaken some kind of preventative measure

Doctors’ perspective

Every episode is seen as an acute one without treating recurrence. ^RECAP
Cystitis may not be a priority for all doctors. ^RECAP
Doctors do not advise starting prophylaxis until patients have experienced a mean 4-5 infections and discuss with him your
need to reduce your burden. ^RECAP

Recurrent cystitis have a significant impact on health related quality of life
They comprise a wide health and economic burden, this is why it is important not to underestimate the broad impact of recurrent cystitis
Effective approaches to manage recurrent uncomplicated cystitis do exist. Effective management is shown to be associated with an improved quality of life. Therefore, ask your doctor for help.

RECAP = Where a claim is followed by the RECAP, this means that this claim is endorsed by the RECAP board of experts.