ABSTRACT
<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To assess the economic evaluation of short- and long-term antiviral treatments of HBeAg-positive chronic hepatitis B from the perspective of the Chinese health care system.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>A 10-health state Markov model was developed to estimate long-term cost and effectiveness of different treatments of HBeAg-positive CHB. Incremental cost-effectiveness analysis was then carried out.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>In comparison with no antiviral treatment, lamivudine administered for 1-year was a highly cost-effective short-course treatment for HBeAg-positive CHB. However, of the treatments evaluated, lamivudine plus adefovir as a rescue medication or adefovir plus lamivudine as a rescue medication administered for 5 years resulted in a more sustained decrease in the rate of disease progression. In comparison with 1 year lamivudine treatment, the incremental cost per Quality Adjusted Life Year (QALY) for treatment with lamivudine plus adefovir or adefovir plus lamivudine as a rescue medication for 5 years was CNY 25 115 and 35 577 respectively, which was 55.2% and 36.5% lower than the estimated international threshold value for China.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>In comparison with no antiviral treatment, lamivudine administered for 1-year is a highly cost-effective short-course treatment. Longer duration antiviral treatments, lamivudine plus adefovir or adefovir plus lamivudine as a rescue medication are both cost-effective strategies, resulting in a more sustained decrease in the rate of disease progression.</p>