title: Cost-effectiveness of ocular interventions.
abstract: The cost-effectiveness of ophthalmic interventions has become increasingly important as the US health care budget continues to grow. During the past two decades, a methodology rooted in utility analysis has provided a way to objectively assess the value of an intervention for a specific disease. Specifically within the field of ophthalmology, there is a growing body of literature on utility analysis using patient preference-based outcomes for ophthalmic disease. This has led the way to combining costs with utility values to derive a cost-utility analysis, or cost-effectiveness, for a given ophthalmic procedure. This article outlines this methodology, provides a reference-case example for initial cataract surgery, and describes a comparative study of the value associated with interventions within the field of ophthalmology and across other medical specialties.
authors.affiliation: The Center for Evidence-Based Health Care Economics, Retina Vascular Unit, Cataract and Primary Eye Care Service, Wills Eye Hospital, Jefferson Medical College, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. bgbusbee@yahoo.com
authors.forename: Brandon G
authors.initials: BG
authors.lastname: Busbee
authors.forename: Gary C
authors.initials: GC
authors.lastname: Brown
authors.forename: Melissa M
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Brown
mesh_terms: D003362:Cost-Benefit Analysis; D003695:Delivery of Health Care / Q000191:economics*; D017048:Health Care Costs; D006801:Humans; D009885:Ophthalmology / Q000191:economics*; D011788:Quality of Life; D019057:Quality-Adjusted Life Years