LAUSR

The efficacy of biologics in psoriasis treatment is clinically proven; however, biologics are expensive. In this study, we assessed the real‐world cost‐effectiveness of biologics for psoriasis treatment by evaluating the relationship between biologic drug survival (DS) and total medical‐treatment costs from a pharmacoeconomic viewpoint. Furthermore, the effects of patient factors on cost‐effectiveness were investigated. We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of 135 cases who received either a tumor necrosis factor‐alpha (TNF‐α) monoclonal antibody (TNF‐mab), interleukin (IL)‐17 mab, or IL23p19‐mab for psoriasis from January 2010 to June 2020 at Yamaguchi University Hospital. We compared the monthly medical‐treatment costs according to biologic classification and found that costs of medical services, tests, and external preparations required for the treatment process were significantly higher in the TNF‐mab group than in the other groups, and the total medical costs associated with TNF‐mab treatment were significantly higher than those of IL17‐mab treatment. The total monthly cost of medical care was lower in the long‐term DS group than in the short‐term group. The number of prescriptions for external preparations, comprising Vitamin D3 and corticosteroid, was significantly higher in the long‐term DS group than in the short‐term group; in the TNF‐mab group, the proportion of patients without smoking habits was significantly higher in the long‐term group as well. Our study indicated that when costly biologics are used for psoriasis treatment, the maintenance of long‐term DS and appropriate patient guidance might improve the quality of medical care, thus allowing cost‐effective medical care.