Home Health & Hospice Week

Proponents of home infusion have new study results to boost their case. “Option Care patients treated with immunoglobulin (IG) therapy at home with a high level of clinical oversight had better outcomes compared to others receiving the therapy,” according to a study presented at the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology annual meeting last month. Researchers also found the cost of therapy to be lower than in other settings.

Researchers led by physician Jordan Orange, professor of pediatrics and immunology at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, found that serious bacterial infections were lower in Option Care IVIG patients (.16 per patient per year) compared to control IVIG patients (.29 per patient per year); serious adverse events (renal impairment, hepatitis, anaphylaxis anaseptic meningitis) were lower in Option Care SCIG patients (.08 per patient per year) compared to SCIG control patients (.34 per patient per year); and costs were lower overall for Option Care IVIG patients compared to controls ($112,756 vs. $120,567 per patient per year).

“We found that the provision of comprehensive and consistent care in a patient’s own home does indeed lead to better outcomes,” Orange says in a release. “And an added benefit was that it was actually more cost effective.”