Lynn Antil

Health Care Costs of Diarrheal Disease and Estimates of the Cost-Effectiveness of Rotavirus Vaccination in Vietnam

BACKGROUND Rotavirus disease causes a significant health and economic burden worldwide. Several rotavirus vaccines may soon be available for use. A countrys decision to introduce these vaccines will depend on its rotavirus disease burden, on the cost of the vaccine, and on the results of an economic assessment of the cost and effectiveness of a rotavirus vaccination program. METHODS Data on medical and nonmedical direct costs and indirect costs were established in Khanh Hoa Province, Vietnam, and extrapolated to national estimates on the basis of the birth cohort in 2004. The main outcome measures were economic burden and cost-effectiveness ratio (United States dollars per disability-adjusted life-year averted and dollars per life saved) of vaccination. RESULTS The disease burden is equivalent to an economic burden of an estimated 3.1 million US dollars in medical direct costs, 685,000 US dollars in nonmedical direct costs, and 1.5 million US dollars in indirect costs. From a societal perspective, treatment of rotavirus disease costs an estimated 5.3 million US dollars per year. From the health care system perspective, universal vaccination of infants at a cost of < or = 7.26 US dollars/vaccine dose would be a cost-effective public health intervention, according to the World Bank cost-effectiveness standard for low-income countries (140 US dollars/disability-adjusted life-year). CONCLUSIONS Vaccination can effectively reduce the disease burden and health care costs of rotavirus-specific diarrhea in Vietnam.

Projected Cost-Effectiveness of Rotavirus Vaccination for Children in Asia

BACKGROUND New rotavirus vaccines may soon be licensed, and decisions regarding implementation of their use will likely be based on the health and economic benefits of vaccination. METHODS We estimated the benefits and cost-effectiveness of rotavirus vaccination in Asia by using published estimates of rotavirus disease incidence, health care expenditures, vaccine coverage rates, and vaccine efficacy. RESULTS Without a rotavirus vaccination program, it is estimated that 171,000 Asian children will die of rotavirus diarrhea, 1.9 million will be hospitalized, and 13.5 million will require an outpatient visit by the time the Asian birth cohort reaches 5 years of age. The medical costs associated with these events are approximately 191 million US dollars; however, the total burden would be higher with the inclusion of such societal costs as lost productivity. A universal rotavirus vaccination program could avert approximately 109,000 deaths, 1.4 million hospitalizations, and 7.7 million outpatient visits among these children. CONCLUSIONS A rotavirus vaccine could be cost-effective, depending on the income level of the country, the price of the vaccine, and the cost-effectiveness standard that is used. Decisions regarding implementation of vaccine use should be based not only on whether the intervention provides a cost savings but, also, on the value of preventing rotavirus disease-associated morbidity and mortality, particularly in countries with a low income level (according to 2004 World Bank criteria for the classification of countries into income groups on the basis of per capita gross national income) where the disease burden is great.

Economic Costs of Rotavirus Gastroenteritis and Cost-Effectiveness of Vaccination in Developing Countries

BACKGROUND Rotavirus is the leading cause of severe gastroenteritis in children worldwide. We evaluated the economic burden of rotavirus and the cost-effectiveness of vaccination from the health care perspective. METHODS Estimates were based on existing epidemiological data, cost estimates, vaccine coverage, and efficacy data, as well as hypothetical vaccine prices. Outcome measures included health care and societal costs of rotavirus and benefits and incremental cost-effectiveness ratio of vaccination. Sensitivity analyses evaluated the impact of estimate uncertainty. RESULTS Treatment costs increased with income level, and health burden decreased; however, burden varied across regions. On the basis of current vaccination coverage and timing, rotavirus vaccination would annually prevent 228,000 deaths, 13.7 million hospital visits, and 8.7 million disability-adjusted life-years, saving

Potential cost-effectiveness of vaccination for rotavirus gastroenteritis in eight Latin American and Caribbean countries

188 million in treatment costs and

Economic and health burden of rotavirus gastroenteritis for the 2003 birth cohort in eight Latin American and Caribbean countries

243 million in societal costs. At

Potential cost effectiveness of a rotavirus vaccine in Chile

5 per dose, the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio in low-, lower-middle-, and upper-middle-income countries was

Economic impact of a rotavirus vaccination program in Mexico

88,

Evaluación del impacto económico de la vacuna antirrotavírica en Venezuela

291, and

Impacto económico de la vacuna antirrotavirus en Panamá

329 per disability-adjusted life-year averted, respectively, and

Rotavirus disease in Uzbekistan : Cost-effectiveness of a new vaccine

3,015,