Cost-effectiveness of Fecal Microbiota Transplantation for First Recurrent Clostridioides difficile Infection

Background: Both the American College of Gastroenterology and the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA)/Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America 2021 Clostridioides difficile infection (CDI) guidelines recommend fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) for persons with multiple recurrent CDI. Emerging data suggest that FMT may have high cure rates when used for first recurrent CDI. The aim of this study was to assess the cost-effectiveness of FMT for first recurrent CDI.

Methods: We developed a Markov model to simulate a cohort of patients presenting with initial CDI infection. The model estimated the costs, effectiveness, and cost-effectiveness of different CDI treatment regimens recommended in the 2021 IDSA guidelines, with the additional option of FMT for first recurrent CDI. The model includes stratification by the severity of initial infection, estimates of cure, recurrence, and mortality. Data sources were taken from IDSA guidelines and published literature on treatment outcomes. Outcome measures were quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs), costs, and incremental cost-effectiveness ratios (ICERs).

Results: When FMT is available for first recurrent CDI, the optimal cost-effective treatment strategy is fidaxomicin for initial nonsevere CDI, vancomycin for initial severe CDI, and FMT for first and subsequent recurrent CDI, with an ICER of $27 135/QALY. In probabilistic sensitivity analysis at a $100 000 cost-effectiveness threshold, FMT for first and subsequent CDI recurrence was cost-effective 90% of the time given parameter uncertainty.

Conclusions: FMT is a cost-effective strategy for first recurrent CDI. Prospective evaluation of FMT for first recurrent CDI is warranted to determine the efficacy and risk of recurrence.