The Cost Effectiveness of Acamprosate in the Treatment of Alcoholism in Germany

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Abstract
Alcoholism places a considerable economic burden on society. The rate of relapse of previously weaned alcoholics has been shown to decrease following treatment with acamprosate. Therefore, this study investigated the cost effectiveness of acamprosate in the treatment of alcoholism in Germany from the perspective of the German healthcare system. In this retrospective analysis of clinical data, the additional direct medical costs per additional abstinent alcoholic incurred by adjuvant acamprosate therapy of previously weaned alcoholics were quantified. In the base—case analysis, average case—related direct costs were applied. The cost—effectiveness ratio was —2600 deutschmarks (DM) per additional abstinent patient. Thus, the administration of acamprosate is cost saving. The cost benefit of acamprosate was also shown in a sensitivity analysis. The variance of the target variable under ‘real world’ conditions was simulated and the impact of the model variables on the target variable was quantified using a deterministic model. The variance was broad and the rate of abstinence under acamprosate was the independent variable with the greatest impact on the target variable. From the perspective of both the German healthcare system (i.e. direct medical costs) and the Statutory Health Insurance expenses, adjuvant acamprosate therapy led to net savings, while at the same time improved the patient’s state of health. Based on the naturalistic design of the underlying clinical trial and on this economic evaluation, it can be concluded that adjuvant acamprosate therapy leads to net savings under ‘real world’ conditions.