Drug that costs as little as 50 cents per day could save hospitals thousands, McMaster study finds

(Press-News.org) A study led by McMaster University researchers shows that a widely available and inexpensive medication not only prevents potentially serious stomach bleeding in critically ill patients, but also saves hospitals thousands of dollars.  

Published in JAMA Network Open on Dec. 1, 2025, the study is the first to demonstrate the economic benefits of the medication, pantoprazole, when prescribed in hospital for mechanically ventilated patients in the intensive care unit (ICU). These patients on life support are at high risk of upper gastrointestinal bleeding, a complication caused by stress-induced ulcers in the stomach that can prolong hospital stays and increase costs.  

“In an era of rising health-care costs, interventions that are both clinically effective and cost-saving are rare. Pantoprazole checks both boxes,” said Feng Xie, lead author of the study and a professor in the Department of Health Research Methods, Evidence and Impact at McMaster.  

The findings build on the landmark Re-evaluating the Inhibition of Stress Erosions (REVISE) Trial led by McMaster, which established pantoprazole’s clinical effectiveness in preventing bleeding. The trial was run in 68 centres in eight countries and over 4,800 patients were enrolled. 

Until now, the economic impact of prescribing pantoprazole each day for patients on breathing machines had been unclear. The researchers conducted a cost-effectiveness analysis using international data from the REVISE trial, comparing outcomes and resource use between patients who received pantoprazole daily and those who did not. The results have significant implications for critical care practitioners, pharmacy departments, and policymakers.   

“Pantoprazole costs between 50 cents and two dollars per dose across the country, yet our analysis showed how prescribing it to invasively ventilated patients can save healthcare resources by reducing bleeding events and reducing length of stay in the intensive care unit  and hospital,” said senior author Deborah Cook, a professor in the Department of Medicine at McMaster. 

“In the expensive, high-technology ICU setting, this is a simple, low-cost intervention that improves outcomes and reduces health-care costs,” adds Cook, a critical care physician practising at St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton.  

This economic evaluation, E-REVISE, was funded by grants from the Hamilton Academic Health Sciences Organization and the Canadian Institutes for Health Research. The REVISE Trial was funded by the Canadian Institutes for Health Research, the Accelerating Clinical Trials Fund, Physicians Services Incorporated of Ontario, Hamilton Association of Health Sciences Organization, and the National Health Medical Research Council of Australia. 

 

The paper is available at doi:10.1001/jananetworkopen.2025.52771 

To set up interviews, please contact the authors directly: 

Feng Xie (lead author): fengxie@mcmaster.ca 
Professor in the Department of Health Research Methods, Evidence and Impact at McMaster University  

• Unavailable Tuesday, Dec. 2 afternoon and Wednesday, Dec. 3 morning (ET) 

Deborah Cook (senior author): debcook@mcmaster.ca  
Professor in the Department of Medicine at McMaster University 

Unavailable Sunday, Nov. 30 from 12-8pm ET and Monday, Dec. 1 from 7:30-9:30am ET 

All other queries: 

Jennifer Stranges and Adam Ward 
Faculty of Health Sciences, McMaster University 
stranj4@mcmaster.ca; warda17@mcmaster.ca  

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