Induction therapy with rabbit antithymocyte globulin versus basiliximab after kidney transplantation: a health economic analysis from a German perspective

A health economic analysis was undertaken based on the one-year database from a randomized study of rabbit anti-human thymocyte immunoglobulin (rATG) versus basiliximab, in kidney transplantation using resource utilization data and cost estimates from three German hospitals. A three-state Markov model was applied to estimate cost effectiveness to 10 years post-transplant. Total mean treatment cost per patient to year 1 post-transplant was €62,075 versus €59,767 for rATG versus basiliximab (p