Cost-effectiveness of ethyleicosapentaenoic acid in the treatment of bipolar disorder

Background: This study develops an economic model to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of ethyl-eicosapentaenoic acid (ethyl-EPA) as an adjunct treatment of bipolar I disorder. Methods: A 1-year Markov model is used incorporating three health states: euthymic, manic and depressive. The model was populated using outcomes from a clinical trial on clinical efficacy and other published literature. Results: The incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) per quality-adjusted life year (QALY) of ethyl-EPA in comparison with placebo was estimated to be -£2,782 in 2008/09 prices, the negative ICER indicating ethyl-EPA to be a more effective and less costly treatment option than placebo in terms of cost savings of other resource use. Conclusions: The sensitivity analysis indicated that the results were robust. Future research covering a longer time period using broader costs of the disease will be required to consolidate these findings.