IMPORTANCE Surgery and hearing aids have similar outcomes in terms of hearing acuity but differ in terms of cost, aesthetics, and patient quality of life. The cost-effectiveness and budget impact of otosclerosis treatments have never been studied in Europe.OBJECTIVES To compare the estimated mean costs per patient over 10 years of surgery vs hearing aids for the treatment of otosclerosis and to estimate the budget impact of an increase in the proportion of patients receiving surgical treatment.
DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS This economic evaluation analyzed French and Europeanepidemiological data on the surgical management of symptomatic otosclerosis and compared them with data from the literature to build economic models. The analysis was conducted in January 2021.EXPOSURES Two care pathways were considered in the treatment of otosclerosis, either hearing aid or surgery.
MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURESCosts were studied over 10 years using Markov models of the 2 care pathways (hearing aid vs surgery). The budget impact analysis was performed over 5 and 10 years, assuming a 1-percentage point yearly increase in the proportion of patients receiving surgical treatment.
RESULTSOver 10 years, the estimated mean cost per patient was significantly lower in the surgery group compared with the hearing aid group (€3446.