Out-of-pocket expenses and parent reported quality of life in children with cow's milk protein allergy in Bogotá, Colombia.

Objective: To identify the out-of-pocket expenses and parent-reported quality of life (QoL) of children with a diagnosis of cow's milk protein allergy between the ages of 0 and 5 using the Food Allergy Quality of Life Questionnaire - Parent Form.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in two tertiary care centers in Bogotá. Demographic, medical information, and QoL scores were collected by parental interview. We carried out a cost-of-illness analysis based on self-reported out-of-pocket expenses attributed to the treatment as a whole and the family's monthly income. Exploratory analyses used the QoL scores and the percentage of out-of-pocket expenses attributable to treatment as outcomes.

Results: 122 families were analyzed. Median subject age was 17 months (Q1-Q3: 11-26.75 months) and female subjects made up 71% of the sample. The median QoL score was 3.21 points (Q1-Q3: 2.43-4.34) and only differed by age groups and personal history of other food allergies. The median out-of-pocket treatment related costs was 300,000 Colombian pesos (COP) (Q1-Q3: 280,000-340,000 COP). About 17% of the families had to pay over 15% of their monthly income to purchase food and dietary products. Out-of-pocket treatment related costs differed depending on whether the treatment included formulas (Mann-Whitney test p < 0.001). Out-of-pocket treatment expenses were uncorrelated with the QoL scores.

Conclusion: Food allergy related QoL scores were not associated with out-of-pocket expenses as a whole or as a fraction of monthly income but were higher in children with additional food allergies and in older age groups, suggesting a lower QoL.