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Cost-effectiveness Analysis of Intraoperative Cell Salvage for Obstetric Hemorrhage
Grace Lim1, Vladyslav Melnyk, Francesca L Facco
1From the Department of Anesthesiology (G.L., V.M., J.H.W.) and the Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Magee-Womens Research Institute and Foundation (F.L.F.), University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; and the Department of Medicine and Clinical and Translational Science Institute, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (K.J.S.).
Background:
Cost-effectiveness analyses on cell salvage for cesarean delivery to inform national and societal guidelines on obstetric blood management are lacking. This study examined the cost-effectiveness of cell salvage strategies in obstetric hemorrhage from a societal perspective.
Methods:
Markov decision analysis modeling compared the cost-effectiveness of three strategies: use of cell salvage for every cesarean delivery, cell salvage use for high-risk cases, and no cell salvage. A societal perspective and lifetime horizon was assumed for the base case of a 26-yr-old primiparous woman presenting for cesarean delivery. Each strategy integrated probabilities of hemorrhage, hysterectomy, transfusion reactions, emergency procedures, and cell salvage utilization; utilities for quality of life; and costs at the societal level. One-way and Monte Carlo probabilistic sensitivity analyses were performed. A threshold of $100,000 per quality-adjusted life-year gained was used as a cost-effectiveness criterion.
Results:
Cell salvage use for cases at high risk for hemorrhage was cost-effective (incremental cost-effectiveness ratio, $34,881 per quality-adjusted life-year gained). Routine cell salvage use for all cesarean deliveries was not cost-effective, costing $415,488 per quality-adjusted life-year gained. Results were not sensitive to individual variation of other model parameters. The probabilistic sensitivity analysis showed that at the $100,000 per quality-adjusted life-year gained threshold, there is more than 85% likelihood that cell salvage use for cases at high risk for hemorrhage is favorable.
Conclusions:
The use of cell salvage for cases at high risk for obstetric hemorrhage is economically reasonable; routine cell salvage use for all cesarean deliveries is not. These findings can inform the development of public policies such as guidelines on management of obstetric hemorrhage.
