OBJECTIVES

Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are widely prescribed to patients with osteoarthritis (OA), it was assumed that both cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) inhibitor and non-selective NSAIDs have similar efficacy but associated with different rates of adverse events. Imrecoxib was approved by the Chinese Food and Drug Administration (CFDA) in 2011, which is a COX-2 inhibitor. This study is aimed to access the cost-effectiveness of celecoxib, imrecoxib and diclofenac for managing OA in Chinese aged ≥55 years and ≥65 years based on the real-world data from China.

METHODS

The model adopted in this study was an economic model for OA from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, and updated with relative risks from the CONDOR data. The effectiveness indicator was quality-adjusted life years (QALYs), and the analysis was conducted in the social terms. Data of cost was updated with Chinese cost, which was collected from the Hospital Information System (HIS) of 170 hospitals in China (Su-value Database). The relative risk of imrecoxib was collected from randomized controlled trials. Different sceneries of treatment durations and baseline ages were set in the analysis.

RESULTS

Over a 6-month treatment duration, compared with no treatment, a higher QALYs gained could be found in imrecoxib (0.30), celecoxib (0.27) and diclofenac (0.20). The cost gained per patient was lowest in diclofenac (＄663.38) while highest in imrecoxib (＄912.28). Imrecoxib was a cost-effective option with the ICER of ＄4309 and ＄2489 versus celecoxib and diclofenac, respectively. A similar result could be found in a 12-month and 24-month treatment duration. In Chinese OA patients aged ≥65 years, the ICER was ＄3856 and ＄2738 for imrecoxib versus celecoxib and diclofenac, respectively, over a 6-month treatment duration.

CONCLUSIONS

With the gross domestic product/capita in Chinese in 2018 was ＄10407, the imrecoxib can be a cost-effective option over different treatment durations in Chinese OA patients.