Cost-benefit analysis of hyperphenylalaninemia due to 6-pyruvoyl-tetrahydropterin synthase (PTPS) deficiency: for consideration of expanded newborn screening in Hong Kong

Objectives: To evaluate the cost-benefit of implementing an expanded newborn screening programme for hyperphenylalaninemias due to 6-pyruvoyl-tetrahydropterin synthase (PTPS) deficiency in Hong Kong.

Setting: Regional public hospitals in Hong Kong providing care for cases of inborn errors of metabolism.

Methods: Implementational and operational costs of a new expanded mass spectrometry-based newborn screening programme were estimated. Data on various medical expenditures for the mild and severe phenotypic subtypes were gathered from a case cohort diagnosed with PTPS deficiency from 2001 to 2009. Local incidence from a previously published study was used.

Results: Implementation and operational costs of an expanded newborn screening programme in Hong Kong were estimated at HKD 10,473,848 (USD 1,342,801) annually. Assuming a birthrate of 50,000 per year and an incidence of 1 in 29,542 live births, the medical costs and adjusted loss of workforce per year would be HKD 20,773,207 (USD 2,663,232). Overall the annual savings from implementing the programme would be HKD 9,632,750 (USD 1,234,968).

Conclusions: Our estimates show that implementation of an expanded newborn screening programme in Hong Kong is cost-effective, with a significant annual saving for public expenditure.