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At-Home UVB Therapy vs.
Systemic Therapies
Calculating the
Lifetime Cost of Care Compared to Other Therapies
Excerpted from Skin and Aging
ISSN: 1096-0120, Vol 13, Issue 7_2005, July 2005, Pages 50-52
Authors: CB Yelverton, AS Kulkarni, R Balkrishnan, SR Feldman.
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At-home treatments with ultraviolet type-B (UVB)
phototherapy can offer a convenient, cost-effective and efficacious choice for
treatment of your patients’ psoriasis, researchers noted in a poster they
presented at [the 2005] American Academy of Dermatology.
Published studies indicate that efficacy of UVB phototherapy is anywhere from
60% effective for broad-band UVB to nearly 80% effective for narrow-band UVB
phototherapy for
treating psoriasis. To compare treatment options, researchers developed a
payer-perspective model that they used to calculate the cost of home UVB
phototherapy, topical psoralen-UVA (PUVA), and other systemic treatments for
psoriasis such as acitretin, methotrexate, efalizumab (Raptiva) etanercept (Enbrel),
adalimumab (Humira) and alefacept (Amevive).
After gathering and analyzing the data, researchers
concluded that UVB phototherapy continues to be “an effective and relatively
inexpensive option for many patients.” They further stated that “Insurers should
reduce disincentives to phototherapy treatment,” and that they should encourage
physicians to “make greater use of home phototherapy treatment options.”
The Findings:
Home UVB phototherapy was the least expensive, costing about $7,100 for a 30-year
course of treatment. Table 1 shows comparisons. For more
information, see Table 2, Treatments at a Glance.
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TABLE 1 |
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HOW THE
TREATMENTS COMPARE |
|
Treatment |
Annual Drug Cost |
Annual Treatment Administration |
Annual Laboratory |
Annual Follow-up |
Present Value of 30-year Course of
Treatment |
| Home UVB |
None |
$2,150 |
None |
$195 |
$7,085 |
| PUVA |
$398 |
$412 |
$241 |
$390 |
$19,102 |
| Methotrexate |
$816 |
$1,410 |
None |
$195 |
$37,591 |
| Acitretin |
$4,471 |
None |
$137 |
$293 |
$75,113 |
| Alefacept |
$10,702 |
None |
$73 |
$293 |
$171,915 |
| Efalizumab |
$16,198 |
None |
$9 |
$390 |
$257,684 |
| Adalimumab |
$17,818 |
None |
$9 |
$293 |
$281,282 |
|
Etanercept |
$17,910 |
$406 |
$1,597 |
$293 |
$319,356 |
|
TABLE 2 |
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TREATMENTS AT A GLANCE |
|
Treatment |
Administration |
Dosage |
Treatment
Frequency |
Labs |
Other
Intervention |
Follow-up
(per year) |
| Home UVB |
N/A |
6 Minutes |
Every Other Day |
None |
None |
Four Times |
| PUVA |
Oral |
40 mg |
30 Treatments per Year |
None |
None |
Four TImes |
| Methotrexate |
Oral (Tablet) |
15 mg |
Weekly |
CBC & LFT
8 Times/yr |
Biennial Liver Bioposy |
Eight Times |
| Acitretin |
Oral |
25 mg |
Daily |
Lipids&LFT
4 Times/yr |
None |
Six Times |
| Alefacept |
Intramuscular
(In Office) |
15 mg |
18 Treatments per Year |
CD4 Count with Each
Injection |
None |
Six Times |
| Efalizumab |
Subcutaneous |
75 mg |
Weekly |
CBC
6 Times/yr |
None |
Six Times |
| Adalimumab |
Subcutaneous |
40 mg |
Every Other Week |
PPD at
Initiation |
None |
Six Times |
|
Etanercept |
Subcutaneous |
50 mg |
Weekly |
PPD at Initiation |
None |
Eight Times |
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