Topical application of hyaluronic acid and amino acids in hard-to-heal wounds: a cost-effectiveness analysis.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this cost-effectiveness analysis was to estimate the monetary cost required to achieve a gain in health benefit. An analytic model to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of a topical medical device comprising a mixture of hyaluronic acid and amino acids (HA+AA medical device) (Vulnamin, Professional Dietetics SpA, Italy) as compared to standard of care (SoC) for hard-to-heal (chronic) wounds is presented. METHOD: Retrospective data was analysed from a cohort of patients as well as information from published literature. For each paper, the following information was extracted number of patients enrolled in each treatment arm and the results of prespecified reviewed outcomes. RESULTS: A total of six studies involving 378 patients were included in this pooled analysis. Findings showed that treatment with the HA+AA medical device has the potential to lower consumption of resources. With regards to wound healing, in both superficial and deep wounds, treatment benefits of the HA+AA medical device included rapid wound size reduction; faster healing; reduction of dressing changes; reduced infection risk; and reduced treatment costs. Results showed the HA+AA medical device to be 32% more cost-effective than comparators in the treatment of hard-to-heal wounds (time horizon selected=six months). CONCLUSION: The findings of this analysis showed that treatment with the HA+AA medical device is a valid alternative to SoC care because it is cheaper, and its utility and effectiveness are greater. In addition, the results of the analysis showed a direct relationship between the time to complete healing and the increase in costs (increasing the period of time to reach complete healing increases the costs associated with the treatment).