Abstract
OBJECTIVE: Economic studies increasingly guide health care resource allocation decisions. Because rigorous adherence to accepted definitions and research techniques is critical to ensure accuracy, we evaluated the terminology and methods of otolaryngology economic analyses. STUDY DESIGN: A total of 71 articles published from 1990 to 1999 in 6 peer-reviewed otolaryngology journals with terms such as "cost-effective" in their title or representing economic analyses were reviewed for terminology and use of established methodology guidelines. RESULTS: Over half (35 of 66) of terms such as "cost-effective" were used incorrectly, and 60% of articles (39 of 64) confused "charge" and "cost" data. Eleven percent (7 of 64) of papers specified the perspective of their analysis. About half (17 of 30) reported a summary measure such as a cost-effectiveness ratio. Only one third (23 of 63) performed sensitivity analyses. CONCLUSION: Adherence to accepted definitions and research methods is inconsistent, although we did note moderate improvements in making the distinction between costs and charges, defining of study perspective, and performing sensitivity analysis. SIGNIFICANCE: Greater attention to both terminology and methodology can enhance the quality of economic analyses and ultimately improve certain resource allocation decisions.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 496-502 |
| Number of pages | 7 |
| Journal | Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery |
| Volume | 124 |
| Issue number | 5 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 2001 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:From the University of Washington, Seattle. Presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery Foundation, Inc, New Orleans, LA, September 26-29, 1999 The research presented here was supported in part by the Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Health Administration, Health Services Research and Development Service (CD-98318-A). Dr Yueh is a Research Associate at the VA Puget Sound Health Care System. The views expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the Department of Veterans Affairs. Reprint requests: Eric J. Kezirian, MD, MPH, University of Washington, Box 356515, Seattle, WA 98195-6515; e-mail, kezirian @u.washington.edu. Copyright © 2001 American Association of Otolaryngology—Head and Neck Surgery Foundation, Inc. 0194-5998/2001/$35.00 + 0 23/1/114675 doi:10.1067/mhn.2001.114675