Korean J Urol.  2002 Jul;43(7):619-623.

An Economic Evaluation of Pharmacological Therapy and Transurethral Resection of the Prostate for the Treatment of Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia

• Lee DJ
• Cho JS
• Chung BS

Abstract

PURPOSE: An economic analysis of pharmacological therapy and transurethral resection of the prostate (TURP) for patients with benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) was conducted.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Twenty six patients had undergone TURP from January to June 2000 were enrolled in this study. The costs associated with this group of patients were compared with those of 7 patients treated with medication (doxazosin, terazosin, tamsulosin, and finasteride only and alpha-blocker with finasteride).
RESULTS
The mean cost for TURP was 1,900,000 won. The most expensive medical therapy was finasteride, which was followed by tamsulosin, terazosin, and doxazosin, with an estimated 12-month cost of 817,000won, 695,000won, 396,000won, and 372,000won respectively. The costs associated with doxazosin remained lower than those associated with TURP for approximately 5.3 years (the corresponding break-even point was 2.4 years for finasteride vs. TURP).
CONCLUSIONS
Among the pharmacological therapies, doxazosin is the most cost effective. TURP was more cost effective than doxazosin therapy after 5.3 years. In view of the cost-effectiveness, TURP may be considered as the mode of primary therapy for the patients with severe symptoms of BPH.

Keyword

Prostate; Economic analysis; Transurethral resection; Pharmacological therapy

MeSH Terms

Doxazosin
Finasteride
Humans
Prostate*
Prostatic Hyperplasia*
Transurethral Resection of Prostate
Doxazosin
Finasteride