Bypass versus Angioplasty in Severe Ischaemia of the Leg (BASIL) trial: Health-related quality of life outcomes, resource utilization, and cost-effectiveness analysis

摘要

Background: The Bypass versus Angioplasty in Severe Ischaemia of the Leg (BASIL) trial showed that survival in patients with severe lower limb ischemia (rest pain, tissue loss) who survived postintervention for >2 years after initial randomization to bypass surgery (BSX) vs balloon angioplasty (BAP) was associated with an improvement in subsequent amputation-free and overall survival of about 6 and 7 months, respectively. We now compare the effect on hospital costs and health-related quality of life (HRQOL) of the BSX-first and BAP-first revascularization strategies using a within-trial cost-effectiveness analysis.Methods: We measured HRQOL using the Vascular Quality of Life Questionnaire (VascuQol), the Short Form 36 (SF-36), and the EuroQol (EQ-5D) health outcome measure up to 3 years from randomization. Hospital use was measured and valued using United Kingdom National Health Service hospital costs over 3 years. Analysis was by intention-to-treat. Incremental cost-effectiveness ratios were estimated for cost per quality-adjusted life-year (QALY) gained. Uncertainty was assessed using nonparametric bootstrapping of incremental costs and incremental effects. Results: No significant differences in HRQOL emerged when the two treatment strategies were compared. During the first year from randomization, the mean cost of inpatient hospital treatment in patients allocated to BSX (dollar34,378) was estimated to be about dollar8469 (95% confidence interval, dollar2,417-dollar14,522) greater than that of patients allocated to BAP (dollar25,909). Owing to increased costs subsequently incurred by the BAP patients, this difference decreased at the end of follow-up to dollar5521 (dollar45,322 for BSX vs dollar39,801 for BAP) and was no longer significant. The incremental cost-effectiveness ratio of a BSX-first strategy was dollar184,492 per QALY gained. The probability that BSX was more cost-effective than BAP was relatively low given the similar distributions in HRQOL, surv...