A new study published in PLOS ONE assessed the cost-effectiveness of different vaccine products for meningococcal vaccination among children aged under nine years in Zhejiang province, China. The Chinese national immunization program (NIP) includes polysaccharide vaccine against Neisseria meningitidis serogroup A (MPV-A) and polysaccharide vaccine against Neisseria meningitidis serogroup A and C(MPV-AC), and this study estimated the cost-effectiveness of an alternative strategy using polysaccharide conjugate vaccine against the two different serogroups.
Researchers simulated the economic and health outcomes of meningococcal disease in a 2023 birth cohort with the current meningococcal vaccination strategy and the alternative, from a societal perspective. The findings showed that compared to the current practice, the alternative strategy could avoid 513 meningococcal disease cases, 53 sequelae and 47 deaths. The incremental cost-effectiveness ratio was estimated at $16,899.81 per quality-adjusted life year, which is under the threshold of the GDP per capita of Zhejiang province in 2023. At the threshold, the probability of cost-effectiveness was 15% for the current strategy and 56% for the alternative strategy, respectively. The current meningococcal vaccination strategy has effectively prevented meningococcal disease at a low cost, but with limited serogroup coverage, while using the conjugate vaccine could increase health benefits in a cost-effective manner.
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