Cost-effectiveness of left atrial appendage closure with Watchman for non-valvular atrial fibrillation patients in Japan.

AIMS: Left atrial appendage closure (LAAC) has been demonstrated to be cost-saving relative to oral anticoagulants for stroke prophylaxis in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF) in the United States and Europe. This study assessed the cost-effectiveness of LAAC with the Watchman device relative to warfarin and direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs) for stroke risk reduction in NVAF from a Japanese public healthcare payer perspective. METHODS: A Markov model was developed with 70-year-old patients using a lifetime time horizon. LAAC clinical inputs were from pooled, 5-year PROTECT AF and PREVAIL trials; warfarin and DOAC inputs were from published meta-analyses. Baseline stroke and bleeding risks were from the SALUTE trial on LAAC. Cost inputs were from the Japanese Medical Data Vision database. Probabilistic and one-way sensitivity analyses were performed. RESULTS: Over the lifetime time horizon, LAAC was less costly than warfarin (savings of JPY 1,878,335, equivalent to US $17,600) and DOACs (savings of JPY 1,198,096, equivalent to US $11,226). LAAC also provided 1.500 more incremental quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) than warfarin and 0.996 more than DOACs. In probabilistic sensitivity analysis, LAAC was cost-effective relative to warfarin and DOACs in 99.98% and 99.73% of simulations, respectively. LAAC dominated (had higher cumulative QALYs and was less costly than) warfarin and DOACs in 89.94% and 83.35% of simulations, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Over a lifetime time horizon, LAAC is cost-saving relative to warfarin and DOACs for stroke risk reduction in NVAF patients in Japan and is associated with improved quality-of-life.

This study examined the cost-effectiveness of left atrial appendage closure (LAAC) compared to oral anticoagulants for stroke risk reduction among individuals with a specific type of irregular heart rhythm called non-valvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF). This study evaluated the cost-effectiveness of LAAC using the Watchman device in comparison to warfarin and direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs) from the perspective of Japan's public healthcare system. To investigate this, a computer-based model was developed involving 70-year-old patients over their lifetime. Data from notable studies such as the PROTECT AF and PREVAIL trials (covering 5 years) for LAAC and published meta-analyses for warfarin and DOACs were incorporated into the model. Baseline stroke and bleeding risks were derived from the SALUTE trial on LAAC. Cost inputs were based on data from the Japanese Medical Data Vision database. Additionally, we performed thorough cost-effectiveness analyses, including probabilistic and one-way sensitivity assessments. Our findings revealed that, over a lifetime, LAAC was more cost-effective than both warfarin and DOACs. Further, LAAC contributed an additional 1.500 quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) compared to warfarin and 0.996 QALYs compared to DOACs. In the long-term, adopting LAAC as an alternative to warfarin and DOACs is a cost-effective strategy for reducing stroke risk in NVAF patients in Japan. Moreover, it is associated with enhanced quality-of-life. These findings hold significant implications for informing decision-making in healthcare policies and clinical practices for NVAF patients.

A real-world, retrospective, observational study examining treatment patterns and clinical outcomes in patients with FLT3m + AML in Japan.

OBJECTIVE: Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is the most common form of leukemia among adults in Japan. This study aimed to understand the treatment patterns, health care resource utilization, and costs of FMS-like tyrosine kinase 3 mutation-positive (FLT3m+) AML patients in Japan. METHODS: A retrospective cohort study of Japanese FLT3m + AML patients was conducted using data extracted from a national hospital-based claims database provided by Medical Data Vision Co. Ltd. (MDV; Tokyo, Japan). Patients were identified from the MDV database between April 2008 and April 2021 inclusive. RESULTS: A total of 360 patients were included in this study. The study results suggest that cytarabine + anthracyclines was the most common first-line (1 L) treatment, accounting for 41.3% of the patients. FLT3 inhibitors (FLT3i) was the most common treatment across the study period (95.7%). The mean age of patients was 62.4 years, and most were 65 years or older. The median overall survival (OS) after initiating FLT3i treatment was 394 days. The median treatment duration of FLT3i was 88.5 days, while it was 66.0 days for patients treated with FLT3i within 60 days after hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). The overall mean monthly total treatment cost was JPY 2,009,531.7/per patient per month (PPPM) (USD 17,967.9/PPPM). CONCLUSIONS: The study found specific treatment patterns, trends and features in patients with FLT3m + AML. FLT3i was the most prescribed treatment across the study period and the overall median OS after initiating FLT3i treatment was over 1 year. The findings of this study could be helpful for clinicians to optimize treatment strategies for FLT3m + AML in Japan.

A retrospective, longitudinal study of rheumatoid arthritis treatment patterns with Janus kinase inhibitors and other disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs in Japan.

OBJECTIVES: There is limited information on the clinical use of Janus kinase inhibitors (JAKis) for rheumatoid arthritis treatment in Japan. The aim of this study was to identify disease-modifying antirheumatic drug (DMARD) treatment patterns in Japan. METHODS: This retrospective, longitudinal study extracted data from the Japan Medical Data Center database. Patients with rheumatoid arthritis diagnosis were enrolled 2016-19, during which patients had a first prescription of a major DMARD, split into six mutually exclusive classes: methotrexate (MTX); other conventional synthetic DMARDs; tumour necrosis factor alpha inhibitors; cytotoxic T-lymphocyte-associated antigen-4-immunoglobulin; anti-interleukin-6 receptor therapies; and JAKis. The primary objective was to describe DMARD treatment patterns, especially for JAKis. RESULTS: Overall, 10,399 patients were included in the analysis. The most common treatments were MTX, other conventional synthetic DMARDs, and tumour necrosis factor alpha inhibitors. The total number of JAKi prescriptions increased approximately 8-fold during 2016-19. Most (61.1%) patients who received JAKis had prior MTX or tumour necrosis factor alpha inhibitor treatment. The duration of JAKi treatment was longer than for biologics and other conventional synthetic DMARDs and comparable to that of MTX. CONCLUSIONS: The sequence of drug class prescriptions for rheumatoid arthritis in Japan during 2016-19 followed clinical guidelines. Over this period, JAKis were increasingly used as a second-line treatment following MTX.

Efficacy and safety of rotigotine in elderly patients with Parkinson's disease in comparison with the non-elderly: a post hoc analysis of randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trials.

Rotigotine-a non-ergot dopamine agonist-has two advantages; it can stimulate all dopamine receptors (D1-D5) like innate dopamine, and its transdermal administration provides continuous dopaminergic stimulation. The age of the patient impacts the effect and adverse events of anti-parkinsonian treatment. We conducted a post hoc analysis on three randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trials performed in Japan to clarify the difference of anti-parkinsonian treatment in elderly and non-elderly patients. Data from two combination therapy trials (with levodopa) in advanced stage Parkinson's disease patients and one monotherapy trial in early stage patients were pooled and grouped by age (non-elderly aged < 70, elderly aged 70 +). In each age group, efficacy of rotigotine was compared to placebo. In the combination therapy, total Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale Part III scores and some subtotal scores, including those for tremor, akinesia and gait disturbance, significantly improved in both elderly and non-elderly patients. Regarding safety, the incidence of total adverse event tended to be lower in elderly patients than non-elderly patients, although it was not significant. No difference was observed in maintenance dosage of rotigotine between the two groups. In conclusion, the improvement in motor symptoms and frequency of adverse events were shown to be similar in elderly and non-elderly patients with rotigotine-levodopa combination therapy. Further, there was no major difference in maintenance dosage of rotigotine between the age groups. These results suggest good tolerability of rotigotine among elderly patients.

Correction to: Efficacy and safety of rotigotine in elderly patients with Parkinson's disease in comparison with the non-elderly: a post hoc analysis of randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trials.

Unfortunately, the online published article has errors in Table 1 and Table 2. The corrected tables are given in the following page.

Can serum albumin level affect the pharmacological action of tolvaptan in patients with liver cirrhosis? A post hoc analysis of previous clinical trials in Japan.

BACKGROUND: Patients with hypoalbuminemia often fail to respond to increased doses of loop diuretics. We therefore performed a post hoc analysis to investigate the pharmacological action of tolvaptan and whether it is dependent on the serum albumin level. METHODS: This analysis was based on four previous clinical trials of tolvaptan in patients with liver cirrhosis who exhibited insufficient response to conventional diuretics. We analyzed the correlation between the change in the initial 24-h cumulative urine volume from baseline and the serum albumin level at baseline, and assessed potential predictive factors of response to tolvaptan. RESULTS: The correlation coefficient was 0.029 in the placebo group and -0.112 in the 7.5 mg tolvaptan group of patients with liver cirrhosis. Administration of tolvaptan provoked a stable response regardless of the serum albumin level. Tolvaptan use was identified as a significant predictor of pharmacological action, and was shown to change the initial urine volume by 885 mL (P < 0.0001) in liver cirrhosis patients. CONCLUSIONS: In this post hoc analysis, tolvaptan increased the initial urine volume from baseline regardless of serum albumin levels. Use of tolvaptan as an add-on therapy to loop diuretics can be considered an optimal therapeutic option in patients with insufficient response to loop diuretics.