[Economic evaluation of pneumococcal vaccination in adults aged over 65 years in Castilla y León (SPAIN)].

Introduction: The burden of disease due to pneumonia in older adults has a major impact on health systems. The aim of this study is to carry out an economic evaluation of the vaccination strategy against Streptococcus pneumoniae using the 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine.

Material And Methods: A simulated economic model has been developed in the form of a decision tree to evaluate the cost of the vaccination strategy in the population over 65 years of the Valladolid-East Health Area, versus non-vaccination, using a Monte Carlo probabilistic analysis.

Results: Streptococcus pneumoniae annually generates 557.24 cases of pneumococcal disease in the Valladolid-East Health Area, and 506.60 episodes have pneumonia symptoms. Vaccination of the cohort over 65 years of age is an efficient measure from the third year, with a cost per quality-adjusted life years (QALY) of 20,496.20 €. The number of QALYs gained in a decade is 86.07 and an amount of 216.252.89 € with this vaccination strategy would be saved.

Conclusions: The evaluation of the different incremental costs (QALY,euros) in the years of follow-up, the pneumococcus vaccination program in people over 65 in Castilla y León is cost-effective.