Cost-Effectiveness and Cost-Utility Analysis of Tongxinluo Capsules Compared With Conventional Therapy for the Treatment of Acute Myocardial Infarction

Abstract

Aim: Tongxinluo (TXL) capsule, a traditional Chinese medicine compound, has proven effective in acute myocardial infarction (AMI), but its cost-effectiveness is unclear.

Methods: This economic evaluation utilized individual data from clinical trials to compare major adverse cardiac and cerebrovascular events (MACCEs) at 30 days and quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) at 1 year between an intervention group (TXL combined with conventional therapy) and the control group (placebo plus conventional therapy), from a healthcare perspective. A lifetime cost-utility analysis (CUA) was conducted using a Markov model, and sensitivity analyses were performed to evaluate the robustness of the results.

Results: A total of 3777 patients (TXL: 1889; placebo: 1888) were included in the analysis. The 30-day total costs for the TXL and placebo groups were ¥38,561 ($5399) and ¥39,217 ($5490), respectively, showing no statistical difference. The 30-day MACCEs rates were 3.39% for the TXL group and 5.24% for the placebo group (p < 0.006), indicating TXL's superiority in effectiveness at 30 days. Over a lifetime, the TXL group incurred higher total costs (¥97,108 [$13,595] vs. ¥92,033 [$12,885]) and gained more QALYs (6.70 vs. 6.30). The incremental cost-effectiveness ratio for TXL was ¥12,421/QALY ($1739), below the 1 Gross Domestic Product per capital threshold which was ¥89,358 ($12,510) in 2023 in China. Sensitivity analysis confirmed robust results, revealing that TXL was more likely to be accepted over the placebo when the willingness to pay exceeds ¥12,500 ($1739).

Conclusions: TXL is a cost-effective option compared to placebo in AMI.

Keywords

acute myocardial infarction / cost-effectiveness / cost-utility / tongxinluo capsules / traditional Chinese medicine

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