A Response to: Letter to the Editor Regarding ‘Iron Formulations for the Treatment of Iron Deficiency Anemia in Patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease: A Cost-Effectiveness Analysis in Switzerland’

Abstract

We would like to thank the authors of the letter to the editor for sharing their thoughts on our article comparing the cost-effectiveness of ferric carboxymaltose (FCM), iron isomaltoside (IIM), iron sucrose (IS), and orally administered iron for the treatment of iron deficiency anemia (IDA) subsequent to inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) in Switzerland [1]. Open discussion such as this is a key part of the scientific process to ensure that analyses are fair and robust, which we believe our analysis to be [2]. The letter to the editor raises concerns in four key areas, which we have addressed in turn below. We hope that the clarifications provided give additional helpful information to readers of Advances in Therapy. POPULATIONThe study used pooled data from two randomized controlled trials to inform the analysis. The authors of the letter to the editor raise the concern that this population may not be reflective of the population with IDA subsequent to IBD, citing that the Kulnigg et al. trial enrolled patients with hemoglobin B 10 g/dL, which is a relatively low cutoff for the diagnosis of IDA [3,4]. As mentioned in the ''Discussion''