The effects of early initiation of aripiprazole once-monthly on healthcare resource utilization and healthcare costs in individuals with schizophrenia: real-world evidence from US claims data

Abstract

AimTo evaluate the impact of timing of aripiprazole once-monthly (AOM) initiation on healthcare resource utilization (HCRU), risk of hospitalization, and healthcare costs in patients with schizophrenia.MethodsA retrospective cohort study was conducted using data from the Merative MarketScan database (01/01/2013–12/31/2019). Adults aged ≥18 years with a new episode of care for schizophrenia and an AOM claim were included. Patients were classified into two cohorts based on the time between the first schizophrenia diagnosis and the first AOM claim (early cohort: ≤1 year; late cohort: >1 year). All-cause and psychiatric-specific HCRU, risk of hospitalization, and healthcare costs were evaluated over 1-year post-AOM initiation. The relationship between the timing of AOM initiation and HCRU was evaluated using negative binomial regression, and healthcare costs using generalized linear models (log-link with gamma distribution). Logistic regression was used to estimate the likelihood of hospitalization during the follow up period for both all-cause and psychiatric-specific hospitalization.ResultsA total of 945 patients were included (early cohort: n = 525; late cohort: n = 420). At baseline, the early cohort had lower mean age, a greater proportion of males, and a lower mean Charlson Comorbidity Index score than the late cohort (all p < .05). After adjusting for baseline demographic and clinical characteristics, all-cause and psychiatric-specific hospitalization during the 1-year follow-up period were statistically significantly higher for the late cohort versus the early cohort (all-cause: incident rate ratio [IRR] = 1.63, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.28–2.07, p < .01; psychiatric-specific: IRR = 1.93, 95% CI: 1.46–2.55, p < .01). The early cohort had statistically significantly lower adjusted all-cause ($21,686 versus $29,033; p = .0002) and psychiatric-specific ($24,414 versus $32,461; p = .0002) healthcare costs versus the late cohort.LimitationsThis study utilized claims data, which are intended for administrative purposes rather than for research.ConclusionsThis analysis extends previous evidence for the benefits of AOM in patients with new episodes of schizophrenia, by demonstrating lower HCRU, risk of hospitalization, and healthcare costs with early AOM initiation compared with later initiation.