The potential economic value of a therapeutic Chagas disease vaccine for pregnant women to prevent congenital transmission

Sarah Bartsch, Owen J. Stokes-Cawley, Pierre Buekens, Lindsey Asti, Maria Elena Bottazzi, Ulrich Strych, Patrick T Wedlock, Elizabeth A. Mitgang, Sheba Meymandi, Jorge Abelardo Falcon-Lezama, Peter J. Hotez, Bruce Y. Lee

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

2 Scopus citations

Abstract

Background: Currently, there are no solutions to prevent congenital transmission of Chagas disease during pregnancy, which affects 1–40% of pregnant women in Latin America and is associated with a 5% transmission risk. With therapeutic vaccines under development, now is the right time to determine the economic value of such a vaccine to prevent congenital transmission. Methods: We developed a computational decision model that represented the clinical outcomes and diagnostic testing strategies for an infant born to a Chagas-positive woman in Mexico and evaluated the impact of vaccination. Results: Compared to no vaccination, a 25% efficacious vaccine averted 125 [95% uncertainty interval (UI): 122–128] congenital cases, 1.9 (95% UI: 1.6–2.2) infant deaths, and 78 (95% UI: 66–91) DALYs per 10,000 infected pregnant women; a 50% efficacious vaccine averted 251 (95% UI: 248–254) cases, 3.8 (95% UI: 3.6–4.2) deaths, and 160 (95% UI: 148–171) DALYs; and a 75% efficacious vaccine averted 376 (95% UI: 374–378) cases, 5.8 (95% UI: 5.5–6.1) deaths, and 238 (95% UI: 227–249) DALYs. A 25% efficacious vaccine was cost-effective (incremental cost-effectiveness ratio <3× Mexico's gross domestic product per capita, <$29,698/DALY averted) when the vaccine cost ≤$240 and ≤$310 and cost-saving when ≤$10 and ≤$80 from the third-party payer and societal perspectives, respectively. A 50% efficacious vaccine was cost-effective when costing ≤$490 and ≤$615 and cost-saving when ≤$25 and ≤$160, from the third-party payer and societal perspectives, respectively. A 75% efficacious vaccine was cost-effective when ≤$720 and ≤$930 and cost-saving when ≤$40 and ≤$250 from the third-party payer and societal perspectives, respectively. Additionally, 13–42 fewer infants progressed to chronic disease, saving $0.41-$1.21 million to society. Conclusion: We delineated the thresholds at which therapeutic vaccination of Chagas-positive pregnant women would be cost-effective and cost-saving, providing economic guidance for decision-makers to consider when developing and bringing such a vaccine to market.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)3261-3270
Number of pages10
JournalVaccine
Volume38
Issue number16
DOIs
StatePublished - Apr 3 2020

Keywords

  • Chagas disease
  • Congenital transmission
  • Economics
  • Pregnancy
  • Vaccine

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Molecular Medicine
  • Immunology and Microbiology(all)
  • veterinary(all)
  • Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health
  • Infectious Diseases

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