Many patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) do not have adequate response to the first medical treatment or have adverse effects that lead to treatment discontinuation and change of medication.
MDD causes major quality of life losses and it is among the leading causes of early retirement. As such, the assessment of cost-effectiveness of MDD treatments is certainly worthwhile.
ESiOR studied the cost effectiveness of treatments for MDD patients switching treatment. The study utilized Finnish survey data on both costs and quality of life.
The assessment showed that a new treatment – vortioxetine – is better than comparator treatments with regard to both total treatment costs and effectiveness. The results remained similar regardless of whether indirect cost (productivity losses) were considered or not.