Cost-effectiveness of treatment strategies for non-displaced osteoporotic femoral neck fractures in older adults in Ontario, Canada

Abstract

Aims: This economic evaluation study assessed the cost-effectiveness of six treatment strategies for non-displaced osteoporotic femoral neck fractures (NDFNFs) in older adults using a Markov cohort model from the Ontario, Canada, public payer perspective. Methods: A probabilistic Markov chain Monte Carlo decision analysis model was developed to compare six strategies: 1) cemented femoral fixation total hip arthroplasty (THA; hybrid, cemented femoral component/uncemented cup - 'cemented THA'); 2) cementless THA; 3) cemented hip hemiarthroplasty (HHA); 4) cementless HHA; 5) internal fixation (IF); and 6) conservative treatment. The base case cohort consisted of Canadian patients presenting with a NDFNF aged 65 years, modelled with a lifetime horizon. Outcomes included quality-adjusted life-months (QALMs), lifetime costs (discounted at 1.5% annually), net monetary benefits (NMBs), and incremental cost-effectiveness ratios (ICERs). All costs are presented in Canadian dollars (CAD, $). The cost-effectiveness threshold (λ) was $4,166.67 per QALM. The primary outcome measure was expected NMBs, and the preferred strategy was the one with the highest expected NMBs over the lifetime horizon. Results: The estimated mean costs were $6,054 (IF), $11,995 (cemented THA), $11,011 (cemented HHA), $11,854 (cementless HHA), $15,405 (cementless THA), and $7,617 (conservative treatment). Cemented THA yielded the highest QALMs (192.7). Cemented THA had the highest NMB ($790,784). Cementless THA, cementless HHA, and conservative treatment were absolutely dominated while cemented HHA was extendedly dominated. After excluding dominated strategies, the ICER for cemented THA compared with IF was $127.5 per QALM, indicating that cemented THA is cost-effective relative to IF. At a λ of $4,166.67 per QALM, cemented THA was the most cost-effective strategy in 48.7% of simulations, followed by cemented HHA (31.2%) and IF (17.9%). Conclusion: Cemented femoral fixation THA is the most preferred strategy (highest expected NMB at λ) for NDFNFs in 65-year-old patients. When evaluated against a λ of $4,166.67 per QALM, cemented THA outperforms cementless THA, HHA, IF, and conservative treatment.