Cost-effectiveness of a herpes zoster vaccination program among the French elderly people

Publié le 1 septembre 2016
Mis à jour le 6 septembre 2019

A vaccine against herpes zoster (HZ) and its complications has already proven safe and effective against infection and pain and against the related deterioration of quality of life in the elderly. In order to inform the vaccination decision-making process regarding inclusion of this vaccine in the French immunization schedule, we assessed the cost-effectiveness of several vaccination scenarios, compared to no vaccination. We chose to use a previously published Markov model. Starting vaccination in elderly individuals aged 65, 70 and 75 y old appears more cost-effective than vaccination for those aged 60 y old, with a cost-effectiveness ratio between 30,000 and 35,000 euros per quality-adjusted-life year (QALY) gained for the first 3 age groups versus 54,500 EUR; for the latter group. These results largely contributed to the recommendation to include the HZ vaccination in the French immunization schedule for people aged between 65 and 74 y old in France.

Auteur : Belchior E, Levy Bruhl D, Le Strat Y, Herida M
Human Vaccines & Immunotherapeutics, 2016, vol. 12, n°. 9, p. 2378-82