Cost-effectiveness of endovascular therapy for acute ischemic stroke with large infarct in China

Background Endovascular therapy administered within 24 hours has been shown to improve outcomes for patients with acute ischemic stroke with large infarction, but the data on its cost-effectiveness are limited. Objective To evaluate the cost-effectiveness of endovascular therapy for acute ischemic stroke with large infarction in China, the largest low- and middle-income country. Methods A short-term decision tree model and a long-term Markov model were used to analyze the cost-effectiveness of endovascular therapy for patients with acute ischemic stroke with large infarction. Outcomes, transition probability, and cost data were obtained from a recent clinical trial and published literature. The benefit of endovascular therapy was assessed by the cost per quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs) gained in the short and long term. Deterministic one-way and probabilistic sensitivity analyses were performed to assess the robustness of the results. Results Compared with medical management alone, endovascular therapy for acute ischemic stroke with large infarction was found to be cost-effective from the fourth year onward and during a lifetime. In the long term, endovascular therapy yielded a lifetime gain of 1.33 QALYs at an additional cost of ¥73 900 (US$ 11 400), resulting in an incremental cost of ¥55 500 (US$ 8530) per QALY gained. Probabilistic sensitivity analysis showed that endovascular therapy was cost-effective in 99.5% of the simulation runs at a willingness-to-pay threshold of ¥243 000 (3 × gross domestic product per capita of China in 2021) per QALY gained. Conclusions Endovascular therapy for acute ischemic stroke with large infarction could be cost-effective in China.