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Cost Effectiveness of Herpes Zoster Vaccine in Canada

PharmacoEconomics volume 27, pages 991–1004 (2009)Cite this article

Abstract

Background: Herpes zoster (HZ), or shingles, results from reactivation of latent varicella zoster virus in the sensory ganglia of adults, and results in significant morbidity in the elderly, including the development of postherpetic neuralgia (PHN). The lifetime risk of HZ is about 20–30% and the incidence increases with age. The protective effect of the HZ vaccine has been shown in a large clinical trial; however, the effectiveness of the vaccine decreased with age of vaccination.

Objective: We sought to compare the incremental cost and health benefits of HZ vaccine over status quo (no HZ vaccine) from the perspective of the Canadian healthcare payer.

Methods: We developed a discrete-event simulation model comparing the costs and QALYs accrued to patients receiving HZ vaccine to those who did not. The effect of the vaccine on the (i) incidence of severe, moderate or mild HZ; (ii) severity and duration of HZ; (iii) incidence of PHN among patients with HZ; (iv) duration of PHN; and (v) costs associated with treating HZ and PHN were modelled. Data from published literature, including the Shingle Prevention Study, were used for transition probabilities. Health resource utilizations were estimated using administrative data retrieved from the British Columbia Medical Services Plan and hospital separation databases in British Columbia from 1994 to 2003. Utility estimates were obtained from various published sources. Canadian 2008 costs were used and both cost and QALYs were discounted at a 5% annual rate in the base-case analyses.

Results: On average, receiving the vaccination lowered mean direct medical costs (excluding the vaccine costs) by $Can35 per person. The incremental cost and QALYs per person receiving the vaccine versus no vaccination were $Can115 and 0.0028 QALYs, respectively, resulting in an incremental cost-effectiveness ratio of $Can41 709 per QALY gained for a cohort of elderly subjects aged ≥60 years. Results were robust in probabilistic and univariate sensitivity analyses. Expected value of perfect information was estimated at $Can47.72 per person, reflecting the expected monetary losses that could be avoided by having perfect information on all model parameters.

Conclusion: HZ vaccination of adults, especially for individuals aged 60–75 years, seems to be a cost-effective intervention and might be considered by Canadian decision makers.

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Notes

  1. International Classification of Disease, 9th and 10th editions (ICD-9, ICD-10) diagnostic codes ICD-9 053 and ICD-10 B02 were used to identify cases of HZ and codes ICD-9 053.1 and ICD-10 B02.2 were used to identify PHN-related complications.[11,19]

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Acknowledgements

This study was part of work done by Carlo Marra as a consultant to the British Columbia Centre for Disease Control to evaluate the cost effectiveness of herpes zoster vaccine in British Colombia. The authors have no conflicts of interest that are directly relevant to the content of this study.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Collaboration for Outcomes Research and Evaluation (CORE), Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

    Mehdi Najafzadeh &  Carlo A. Marra

  2. Epidemiology Services, BC Centre for Disease Control, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

    Eleni Galanis & David M. Patrick

  3. Department of Healthcare and Epidemiology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

    David M. Patrick

  4. Centre for Health Evaluation and Outcome Sciences (CHEOS), 1081 Burrard Street, Vancouver, British Columbia, V6Z 1Y6, Canada

    Carlo A. Marra

Authors
  1. Mehdi Najafzadeh
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  2. Carlo A. Marra
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  3. Eleni Galanis
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  4. David M. Patrick
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Correspondence to Carlo A. Marra.

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Najafzadeh, M., Marra, C.A., Galanis, E. et al. Cost Effectiveness of Herpes Zoster Vaccine in Canada. Pharmacoeconomics 27, 991–1004 (2009). https://doi.org/10.2165/11314010-000000000-00000

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Keywords

  • Herpes Zoster
  • Varicella Zoster Virus
  • Human Papilloma Virus Vaccine
  • Varicella Zoster Virus Infection
  • Vaccine Cost