Cost-effectiveness of posaconazole in private and public Brazilian hospitals.

Background: Posaconazole is used for the prophylaxis of invasive fungal disease (IFD). Previous studies have shown it to be cost-effective compared to fluconazole/itraconazole. However, posaconazole has never been economically evaluated in developing countries.

Aims: The aim of the present study was to perform a cost-effectiveness analysis of posaconazole compared to fluconazole in public (SUS) and private hospitals (PHS) in Brazil.

Methods: A cost-effectiveness simulation was conducted on the basis of a pivotal study on the use of posaconazole in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients, adjusting the costs to Brazilian data.

Results: A pharmacoeconomic analysis was performed on a hypothetical sample of 100 patients in each drug group. The total cost of posaconazole use alone was USD$ 220,656.31, whereas that for fluconazole was USD$ 83,875.00. Our results showed that patients with IFD remain hospitalized for an additional 12 days, at an average cost of USD$ 850.85 per patient per day. The total money spent by PHS for 100 patients for 100 days was USD$ 342,318.00 for the posaconazole group and USD$ 302,039.00 for the fluconazole group. An analysis of sensitivity (10%) revealed no intergroup difference.

Conclusions: In Brazil posaconazole is cost-effective, and should be considered for the prophylaxis of patients with AMD/myelodysplasia (AML/MDS) undergoing chemotherapy.