Introduction: Aim of this study was to assess the impact of the introduction of new class of drugs (ARNI: angiotensin receptor-neprilysin inhibitor) on hospital related costs in a real world cohort of patients with chronic heart failure (CHF).
Methods: Seventy-three consecutive patients with CHF and systolic dysfunction eligible for the treatment with ARNIs from the Daunia Heart Failure Registry were enrolled. Incidence of hospitalizations before and after treatment with ARNI, costs for drug and hospitalization for HF were recorded, indexed per year and compared.
Results: Indexed mean number of hospitalizations per year was 0.93 ± 1.70 before and 0.19 ± 0.70 after introduction of ARNI (p < 0.001, -80%), 2.26 ± 1.95 before and 0.38 ± 1.2 after ARNI in the subgroup of patients with at least one hospitalization for HF in the year before treatment with ARNI (p < 0.001, -83%).Mean indexed cost for hospitalization was 2067 ± 3715 euros before and 1847 ± 1549 after ARNI (p n.s., -11%); in the subgroup with at least one hospitalization for HF 5175 ± 4345 before and 2311 ± 2308 after ARNI (p < 0.001, -55%). Cost reduction increased with the number of indexed hospitalization per year before ARNI from 11% to 66%.
Conclusion: In a real world scenario, treatment with ARNI is associated with lower indexed rates of hospitalizations and hospitalization related costs. Cost reduction increases with at least one indexed hospitalization for heart failure before treatment with ARNI.
Keywords: ARNI; Angiotensin receptor blockers; Chronic heart failure; Cost analysis; Neprilysin inhibition; Sacubitril.