Migraine Characteristics, Comorbidities, Healthcare Resource Utilization, and Associated Costs of Early Users of Erenumab in the USA: A Retrospective Cohort Study Using Administrative Claims Data

Introduction Erenumab is indicated for migraine preventive treatment in adults. The objective of this study was to provide descriptive information on real-world use of erenumab including patient profile and treatment patterns. Methods We completed a retrospective review of US data (through May 2019) from the IBM MarketScan(R) Early View Databases, identifying adult patients newly treated with erenumab with a migraine claim in the year prior to first erenumab claim (index) and at least 1 year of continuous pre-index medical and pharmacy insurance coverage, to assess pre- and post-erenumab migraine characteristics, comorbidities, healthcare resource utilization, and associated costs. All data were summarized using descriptive statistics. Results A total of 9753 patients met inclusion criteria. The average (SD) age was 46 (12) years, 85% of patients were female, and 64% had at least one claim for chronic migraine; 70% of erenumab users had an initial dose of 70 mg; 77% of patients in the 6-month follow-up sample (n = 4437) remained on their initial erenumab dose. Persistence at 6-month follow-up was 47.3% with a mean (95% CI) proportion of days covered of 0.68 (0.67, 0.68). In the post-erenumab period, claims for comorbidities of non-migraine headaches and anxiety were reduced and there was a shift to decreased use of acute and preventive medications. Reductions in overall use and associated cost of healthcare resources such as inpatient hospitalization and outpatient office visits were minimal, with slightly more pronounced reductions in the subgroup of patients that were persistent to erenumab. Conclusions We observed reductions in claims for important migraine characteristics, comorbidities, and a shift to decreased use of acute and preventive migraine medications-observations indicative of the real-world effectiveness of erenumab. Further examination is required as persistence to erenumab, which may be influenced by dose titration, appears to be an important factor in changes to healthcare resource utilization and costs.

Automated summary

This study provides descriptive information on the real-world use of erenumab in adults for migraine preventive treatment. Results show that erenumab can reduce claims for migraine characteristics and comorbidities, leading to decreased use of acute and preventive migraine medications.