Potential Direct Costs of Adverse Drug Events and Possible Cost Savings Achievable by their Prevention in Tuscany, Italy: A Model-Based Analysis

Irma Convertino, Stefano Salvadori, Alessandro Pecori, Maria Teresa Galiulo, Sara Ferraro, Maria Parrilli, Tiberio Corona, Giuseppe Turchetti, Corrado Blandizzi and Marco Tuccori ()
Additional contact information
Irma Convertino: University of Pisa
Stefano Salvadori: National Research Council
Alessandro Pecori: National Research Council
Maria Teresa Galiulo: University of Pisa
Sara Ferraro: University of Pisa
Maria Parrilli: Tuscan Regional Centre of Pharmacovigilance
Tiberio Corona: Tuscan Regional Centre of Pharmacovigilance
Giuseppe Turchetti: Sant’Anna School of Advanced Studies
Corrado Blandizzi: University of Pisa
Marco Tuccori: University of Pisa

Drug Safety, 2019, vol. 42, issue 3, No 8, 427-444

Abstract: Abstract Introduction Adverse drug events (ADEs) may represent an important item of expenditure for healthcare systems and their prevention could be associated with a relevant cost saving. Objective The objective of this study was to simulate the annual economic burden for ADEs in Tuscany (Italy) and the potential cost savings related to avoidable ADEs. Methods A systematic review was performed, according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic review and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) and Meta-analysis Of Observational Studies in Epidemiology (MOOSE) statements, on observational studies published from 2006 to 2016 in MEDLINE and EMBASE, focusing on direct costs of ADEs in the inpatient setting from high-income countries. The mean probability of preventable ADEs was estimated over the included studies. The mean ADE cost was calculated by means of Monte Carlo simulation. We then extrapolated the spontaneous reports of ADEs in Tuscany, Italy in 2016 from the Italian National Pharmacovigilance Network (Rete Nazionale di Farmacovigilanza), and we assumed the same costs and preventability probability for these as obtained in the systematic review. Finally, we simulated the possible costs of ADEs and preventable ADEs in Tuscany. Three sensitivity analyses were also performed to test the robustness of the results. Results Of 11,936 articles initially selected, 12 observational studies were included. The estimated mean [± standard deviation (SD)] ADE cost was €2471.46 (± €1214.13). The mean (± SD) probability of preventable ADEs was 45% (± 21). The Tuscan expenditure for ADEs was €3,406,280.63 per million inhabitants (95% confidence interval (CI) 1,732,910.44–5,079,664.61) and the potential cost saving was €1,532,760.25 per million inhabitants (95% CI 779,776.1–2,285,750.60). Sensitivity analyses confirmed the robustness of the results. Conclusions The present simulation showed that ADEs could have a relevant economic impact on the Tuscan healthcare system. In this setting, the prevention of ADEs would result in important cost savings. These results could be likely extended to other healthcare systems.

Date: 2019
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s40264-018-0737-0 Abstract (text/html)
Access to the full text of the articles in this series is restricted.

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:spr:drugsa:v:42:y:2019:i:3:d:10.1007_s40264-018-0737-0

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
http://www.springer.com/adis/journal/40264

DOI: 10.1007/s40264-018-0737-0

Access Statistics for this article

Drug Safety is currently edited by Nitin Joshi

More articles in Drug Safety from Springer
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Sonal Shukla () and Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing ().