A:CARE HEOR study: improving medication adherence leads to better patient prognosis and significant cost saving in Thailand and Mexico

The initial findings from the a:care Health Economics and Outcomes Research (HEOR) study were recently showcased at both the American Heart Association (AHA) Congress and the International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research (ISPOR) Congress.

Medication adherence is crucial for predicting cardiovascular disease (CVD) outcomes in patients requiring secondary prevention. In developing countries, adherence to chronic cardiovascular treatments is less than 50%, which hinders the achievement of targeted clinical outcomes¹. The first a:care Health Economics and Outcomes Research (HEOR) study aimed to estimate the potential benefits of improving adherence to lipid-lowering agents in CVD patients requiring secondary prevention.

The authors conducted a state-transition Markov model simulation for secondary CVD prevention in Mexico and Thailand. They demonstrated that achieving optimal adherence could increase life-years by 0.60 and 0.84, and QALYs (Quality-Adjusted Life Years) by 0.59 and 0.68 in Mexico and Thailand, respectively. Furthermore, this could prevent CV (cardiovascular) event-related medical costs of $614 in Mexico and $313 in Thailand. When including the costs of lipid-lowering therapy, the optimal adherence scenario results in cost savings of $418 in Mexico and $293 in Thailand. These findings of cost savings were consistent across all sensitivity analyses¹.

In developing countries, patients who require lipid-lowering agents for secondary CVD prevention often experience preventable outcomes due to suboptimal medication adherence. Therefore, it is recommended to explore various methods to improve adherence, which could lead to cost savings and the achievement of therapeutic goals¹.

References

1. Cho JY, Wilson FA, Chaikledkaew U, Phrommintikul A, Kim K, Chaiyakunapruk N. Abstract 15092: Projected Cost Saving With Optimal Medication Adherence in Cardiovascular Disease Patients Requiring Lipid Lowering Agents in Mexico and Thailand, AHA Scientific Session 2023, Circulation Vol 148, Issue Suppl_1. November 7, 2023 (https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/circ.148.suppl_1.15092)

2. Cho JY, Wilson FA, Chaikledkaew U, Phrommintikul A, Kim K, Chaiyakunapruk N. EE466 – Economic Evaluation of Improving Medication Adherence for Secondary Cardiovascular Disease Prevention: A Threshold Analysis. ISPOR 2023. Value in Health, Volume 26, Issue 11, S2 (December 2023) (https://www.ispor.org/heor-resources/presentations-database/presentation/euro2023-3787/129016 )