Cost-Effectiveness of Apixaban, Dabigatran, Rivaroxaban, and Warfarin for Stroke Prevention in Atrial Fibrillation

TLDR: In patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation and an increased risk of stroke prophylaxis, apixaban 5 mg, dabigatran 150 mg, and rivaroxaban 20 mg were all cost-effective alternatives to warfarin.

Abstract: Background and Purpose—To estimate the cost-effectiveness of stroke prevention in patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation by using novel oral anticoagulants apixaban 5 mg, dabigatran 150 mg, and rivaroxaban 20 mg compared with warfarin. Methods—A Markov decision-analysis model was constructed using data from clinical trials to evaluate lifetime costs and quality-adjusted life-years of novel oral anticoagulants compared with warfarin. The modeled population was a hypothetical cohort of 70-year-old patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation, increased risk for stroke (CHADS2 ≥1), renal creatinine clearance ≥50 mL/min, and no previous contraindications to anticoagulation. The willingness-to-pay threshold was $50 000/quality-adjusted life-years gained. Results—In the base case, warfarin had the lowest cost of $77 813 (SD, $2223), followed by rivaroxaban 20 mg ($78 738±$1852), dabigatran 150 mg ($82 719±$1959), and apixaban 5 mg ($85 326±$1512). Apixaban 5 mg had the highest quality-adjusted life-year...