Cost-effectiveness analysis of current varicose veins treatments
File(s)
Accepted version
Author(s)
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To analyze the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of technologies for treatment of varicose veins over 5 years - conservative care (CONS), surgery (HL/S), ultrasound guided foam sclerotherapy (UGFS), endovenous laser ablation (EVLA), and radiofrequency ablation (RFA), mechanochemical ablation (MOCA) and cyanoacrylate glue occlusion (CAE). METHODS: A systematic review was updated and used to construct a Markov decision model. Outcomes were re-intervention on the truncal vein, re-treatment of residual varicosities and quality-adjusted life years (QALY) and costs over five years. RESULTS: UGFS has a significantly greater re-intervention rate than other procedures, while there is no significant difference between the other procedures. The cost per QALY of EVLA versus UGFS in our base-case model is £16966 ($23700) per QALY, which is considered cost-effective in the UK. RFA, MOCA and CAE have greater procedure costs than EVLA with no evidence of greater benefit for patients. CONCLUSIONS: EVLA is the most cost-effective therapeutic option, with RFA a close second, in adult patients requiring treatment in the upper leg for incompetence of the GSV. MOCA, UGFS, CAE, CONS and HL/S are not cost-effective at current prices in the UK National Health Service. MOCA and CAE appear promising but further evidence on effectiveness, re-interventions and health-related quality of life is needed, as well as how cost-effectiveness may vary across settings and reimbursement systems.
Date Issued
2022-03-01
Date Acceptance
2021-05-02
Citation
Journal of vascular surgery. Venous and lymphatic disorders, 2022, 10 (2), pp.504-513.e7
ISSN
2213-3348
Publisher
Elsevier
Start Page
504
End Page
513.e7
Journal / Book Title
Journal of vascular surgery. Venous and lymphatic disorders
Volume
10
Issue
2
Copyright Statement
© 2021 Published by Elsevier Inc. on behalf of the Society for Vascular Surgery. This manuscript is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International Licence http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
Sponsor
National Institute for Health Research
Identifier
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/34450353
PII: S2213-333X(21)00414-5
Grant Number
Clinical Lecturer
Subjects
Cost-effectiveness
Economic evaluation
Endothermal
Nonthermal
Varicose veins
Publication Status
Published
Coverage Spatial
United States
Date Publish Online
2021-08-25