Estimating the Economic Effects of Cystic Echinococcosis: Uruguay, a Developing Country with Upper-middle Income

Cost-benefit analyses, run before the commencement of a programme to control a parasitic disease, should include estimates of the economic losses attributable to the disease. Uruguay, a middle-income, developing country, has a recent history of persistent problems with cystic echinococcosis, in both its human population and livestock. The economic effects in Uruguay of this disease, caused by the larval stage of the canine tapeworm Echinococcus granulosus, have now been evaluated. Data on the incidence of the disease, in humans and livestock, were used to construct cost estimates. The estimated minimum cost (U.S.$2.9 million/year) was based on the condemnation costs of infected offal together with the actual costs of the hospital treatment of the human cases. The estimate of the maximum cost (U.S.$22.1 million/year) also included the production losses resulting from lower livestock efficiency and the reduced income of individuals with morbidity attributable to the disease.