Estimating the economic burden of status epilepticus to the health care system

The direct inpatient costs for SE are high compared with the direct costs of admissions for other major conditions such as acute myocardial infarction or congestive heart failure. Data from this study were used to estimate a $4 billion annual direct cost for inpatient admissions for SE. Given the incidence and the high costs, further more detailed evaluation of these costs may be useful in assessing the adequacy of reimbursement for this subset of patients with epilepsy.