Assessment of the therapeutic value of new medicines marketed in Australia

Table 2 Therapeutic value of new drugs assessed with Ahlqvist-Rastad’s rating system

Ahlqvist-Rastad’s rating system			N	%
Drug for conditions with no currently available treatment	A		0	0.0
Added therapeutic value*	B	B1	18	30.5
		B4	1	1.7
		Subtotal	19	32.2
Similar therapeutic value**	C	C1	5	8.5
		C2	20	33.9
		Subtotal	25	42.4
Inferior therapeutic value***	D	D1	2	3.4
		D2	3	5.1
		Subtotal	5	8.5
Uncertain therapeutic value****	E		10	16.9
TOTAL			59	100.0

*The effect (B1)/ safety (B2)/ dosage (B3)/ route of administration (B4) seems to be better for patients than that of previously licensed alternatives.
** First medicine of a new class of agents with similar therapeutic value to that of previously licensed alternatives (C1).
New agent of an existing class with similar therapeutic value to that of previously licensed alternatives (C2).
*** First medicine of a new class with inferior therapeutic value to that of previously licensed alternatives (D1).
New agent of an existing class with inferior therapeutic value to that of previously licensed alternatives (D2).
****New agent whose therapeutic value remains unknown because evaluation is limited to its effects on surrogate end points.

ISSN: 2052-3211