Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a leading cause of disability worldwide. Understanding the impact of MDD on quality of life has become increasingly key in research. To inform future economic analyses, RTI Health Solutions and Lundbeck conducted a systematic literature review to identify published utility values capturing health-related quality of life for MDD patients receiving pharmacological intervention.
For new MDD therapies to gain reimbursement approval, pharmaceutical developers must submit economic evaluations to health technology assessment bodies. These evaluations often require cost-utility analyses that help to understand whether new treatments are cost-effective. Utility values are required for health states modeled in these analyses.
Researchers identified and reviewed studies reporting utility values for different MDD health states. They found that the reviewed studies included diverse populations and clinical definitions for relevant health states. This underscores the need for researchers to take special care in selecting appropriate utility values for the treatment they are evaluating.
Research results highlighted that the evidence base of utility values for MDD is limited. James Brockbank, Associate Director of Health Economics at RTI Health Solutions, concludes, “To ensure appropriate inputs to populate future cost-utility models, pharmaceutical developers should select utility values that align with clinical thresholds used within a model for new MDD treatments.”
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Health state utility values in major depressive disorder treated with pharmacological interventions: a systematic literature review. Brockbank J, Krause T, Moss E, Pedersen AM, Morup MF, Ahdesmaki O, Vaughan J, Brodtkorb T-H. Health Qual Life Outcomes. 2021 Mar 18;19(94). doi: 10.1186/s12955-021-01723-x.