Cost-effectiveness of empagliflozin in the treatment of Malaysian patients with chronic heart failure and preserved or mildly reduced ejection fraction

INTRODUCTION: Empagliflozin demonstrates promising clinical benefits in patients with heart failure (HF). While an early study demonstrates that empagliflozin is cost-effective for treating HF patients with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF) in Malaysia, its cost-effectiveness for HF with ejection fraction (EF)>40% remains unclear. Therefore, the current study aimed to assess the cost-effectiveness of adding empagliflozin to the standard of care (SoC) for HF patients with EF>40% from the perspective of Malaysian healthcare system. Subsequently, the results were consolidated with the findings for HFrEF to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of empagliflozin when used for all HF patients in Malaysia, irrespective of EF.

METHODS: A cost-utility analysis was performed using a validated Markov model, which modelled a cohort of adult patients through health states related to symptom severity and functional impairment, to estimate costs and quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs). The influence of model inputs and assumptions, sensitivity, scenario, and subgroup analyses were explored. All costs were expressed in 2022 Malaysian ringgits (RM). Costs and QALYs were discounted at an annual rate of 3.0% as per local pharmacoeconomic guideline.

RESULTS: The base-case incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) for HF patients with EF>40% was RM 40,454 per QALY gained. At a cost-effectiveness threshold of RM 47,439/QALY gained, empagliflozin was cost-effective in 57% of replications. The model outcomes were sensitive to inputs related to the treatment effect of empagliflozin in reducing HF-related hospitalisation and cardiovascular mortality, and empagliflozin cost. For the overall HF population, the ICER was RM 29,463/QALY gained.

CONCLUSION: The findings suggest that empagliflozin is a cost-effective treatment option for the Malaysian HF population, including those with EF>40%. As such, the intervention warrants consideration by the Malaysian healthcare provider to mitigate the burden of HF and address the unmet needs of the EF>40% population.