Los estudios del coste del alcoholismo: Marco conceptual, limitaciones y resultados en España

Abstract

Studies on economic consequences of alcoholism usually use "cost-of-illness studies" methodology, where impact on society's well-being of a certain problem of health is valued by means of quantifying the costs of resources used for its prevention and treatment, the attributable legal costs, the productivity losses derived from specific morbidity and mortality and the loss of quality adjusted life years. In Spain, and following this methodology, costs of alcoholism have been valued in more than 630,000 annual million pesetas. These studies have received critics in relation to the identification, measurement and quantification of costs, and their utility is been discussed. Nevertheless, and in spite of certain limitations, cost-of-illness studies approximate to the magnitude of the problem, contribute to identify aspects of the problem that suppose a higher cost and help to orient policies. Adjustment to methodology guides and explicit sources and used methods are necessary requirements for its credibility.