title: Cost-effectiveness of antihypertensive treatment in patients 80 years of age or older in Switzerland: an analysis of the HYVET study from a Swiss perspective.
abstract: This analysis shows the economic benefit of antihypertensive treatment in patients 80 years of age or older from the perspective of the Swiss healthcare system. The cost-effectiveness analysis of antihypertensive treatment in the elderly was carried out applying the results of the Hypertension in the Very Elderly Trial study to the Swiss healthcare system. The analysis shows that hypertension treatment provides, compared with placebo, an additional life expectancy of 0.0457 years per patient, over a follow-up period of 2 years. The medication cost was covered by the reduction of costs related to the treatment of strokes, myocardial infarctions and heart failure: the total cost per patient in the active group resulted in a dominant strategy of savings compared with the placebo group. Sensitivity analysis yielded a stable estimate after varying the costs of medication, stroke, myocardial infarction, heart failure and life expectancy, confirming the robustness of these results. Moreover, considering that antihypertensive treatment also positively affects the incidence of dementia, those net benefits might even be underestimated.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Economics, Institute of Social- and Preventive Medicine, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland. thomas.szucs@ifspm.uzh.ch
authors.forename: T D
authors.initials: TD
authors.lastname: Szucs
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Waeber
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Tomonaga
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000959:Antihypertensive Agents / Q000191:economics* / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D017046:Cost Savings; D003362:Cost-Benefit Analysis; D004311:Double-Blind Method; D016527:Drug Costs; D005260:Female; D017048:Health Care Costs; D006299:Health Services for the Aged / Q000191:economics*; D006333:Heart Failure / Q000191:economics / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000150:complications / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000191:economics*; D008017:Life Expectancy; D008297:Male; D018803:Models, Economic; D015337:Multicenter Studies as Topic; D009203:Myocardial Infarction / Q000191:economics / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control; D009313:National Health Programs / Q000191:economics*; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D020521:Stroke / Q000191:economics / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control; D013557:Switzerland; D013997:Time Factors; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D000959:Antihypertensive Agents