State transition model: vorapaxar added to standard antiplatelet therapy to prevent thrombosis post myocardial infarction or peripheral artery disease

<p><b>Objective:</b> To evaluate long-term health benefits and risks of adding vorapaxar (VOR) to the standard care antiplatelet therapy (SC) of aspirin and/or clopidogrel, among a population with a recent myocardial infarction (MI) and/or peripheral artery disease (PAD).</p> <p><b>Research design and methods:</b> In a state-transition model, patients transition between health states (event-free, recurrent MI, stroke, death), while at risk of experiencing non-transition-related revascularization and non-fatal bleeding events. Risk equations developed from the TRA 2°P-TIMI 50 trial’s patient-level data were used to predict cardiovascular (CV) outcomes over longer time horizons. Additional sources, including trials and US-based observational studies, informed the inputs for short-term CV risk, non-CV death, and health-related quality of life. Survival and quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs) were estimated over a lifetime horizon, discounted at 3% per year.</p> <p><b>Results:</b> Within a cohort of 7361 patients with recent MI and/or PAD, VOR + SC relative to SC alone yielded 176 fewer CV events (MIs, strokes, or CV deaths), but 27 more major bleeding events. VOR + SC was associated with increased life expectancy and health benefits (19.93 undiscounted life-years [LYs], 9.57 discounted QALYs vs. 19.61 undiscounted LYs, 9.41 discounted QALYs). The results were most sensitive to scenarios varying time of vorapaxar initiation, and the assumptions in the 90 day period post-MI. Additional analyses showed that add-on vorapaxar provides consistent incremental benefits in high-risk subgroups.</p> <p><b>Conclusion:</b> This study contributes to the growing literature on secondary prevention add-on therapy, as results from these modeling analyses suggest that adding vorapaxar to SC for patients at high atherothrombotic risk can provide long-term health benefits.</p