Peer-reviewed article
Impact and cost-effectiveness of national implementation of rotavirus vaccination in Vietnam: A modeling study.
Huyen Thi Thanh Dang, Andrew Clark, An Le Thanh Nguyen, Hong Thi Duong, Trung Thanh Nguyen et al. ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001This study models the impact of introducing rotavirus vaccination nationally across Vietnam using the domestic ROTAVIN vaccine. Over 10 years, the vaccination program could prevent nearly 98,000 hospital admissions and 433 deaths from rotavirus gastroenteritis in children under five. The program would cost $39.5 million but would be highly cost-effective, with most vaccination costs offset by healthcare savings from the government's perspective and cost-saving overall from society's perspective.
Key points
- ROTAVIN vaccination projected to reduce rotavirus gastroenteritis health burden by 42% over 10 years
- Could avert 97,776 hospital admissions and 433 deaths in children under five
- Program cost of $39.5 million with at least 62% of costs offset by healthcare savings from governmental perspective
- Cost per DALY averted estimated at $982 from governmental perspective; cost-saving from societal perspective
- 99% probability of meeting cost-effectiveness threshold at 0.5 times Vietnam's GDP per capita
Limitations
This is a modeling study using projected estimates rather than observed outcomes from actual vaccination programs, so real-world implementation may differ. The model's results depend heavily on assumptions about vaccine effectiveness, waning immunity, incidence rates, and treatment costs, which are subject to uncertainty.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: In Vietnam, rotavirus remains a leading cause of severe acute gastroenteritis resulting in hospitalization. Although rotavirus vaccines are available in the private sector-primarily accessible to urban children-the Expanded Programme on Immunization has only piloted the vaccine in select provinces. This study assessed the impact and cost-effectiveness of national rotavirus vaccination in Vietnam to inform policy decision on nationwide implementation. METHODS: We used a transparent static cohort model with a granular weekly age structure (< 5 years) to project rotavirus gastroenteritis (RVGE) cases, visits, hospitalizations, and deaths in children under five years, comparing no vaccination to nationwide vaccination with the domestic ROTAVIN vaccine over 10 years starting in 2026. Model inputs drew from global, regional, and local data including pre-vaccine incidence in Vietnam, local vaccine effectiveness and waning data, and treatment costs (governmental and societal perspectives) sourced from a local cost of illness study and hospital records (converted to 2025 USD). Deterministic and probabilistic sensitivity analyses addressed parameter uncertainty. RESULTS: Over ten years, ROTAVIN vaccination was projected to reduce RVGE health burden by 42%, averting 97,776 (95% uncertainty interval 72,722-342,311) hospital admissions and 433 (330-1300) deaths. The program would cost US$39.5 million ($30.7-$117.7 million) for ten birth cohorts (2026-2036). From the governmental perspective, at least 62% of vaccination costs would be offset by healthcare savings. The cost per DALY averted was estimated at $982 (governmental perspective), while the program was cost-saving from the societal perspective in the base case. Sensitivity analyses confirmed robustness, with a 99% probability of cost-effectiveness from the governmental perspective at a willingness-to-pay threshold of 0.5 times Vietnam's GDP per capita (and 100% from the societal perspective). CONCLUSIONS: Nationwide ROTAVIN vaccination could avert a substantial health and economic burden in Vietnam and would be highly cost-effective given recently published thresholds.
Findings the Hub has extracted
Each claim below is labelled by its type of design and links back to this report.
- Intervention
- National implementation of ROTAVIN rotavirus vaccination program for children across Vietnam
- Population
- Children under five years in Vietnam across 10 birth cohorts (2026-2036)
Key finding
42% reduction in rotavirus gastroenteritis health burden over 10 years
Dang et al. · PubMed (US National Library of Medicine) · 6 Oct 2026