title: Health economic evaluation: important principles and methodology.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To discuss health economic evaluation and improve the understanding of common methodology.
  
  
  RESULTS
  This article discusses the methodology for the following types of economic evaluations: cost-minimization, cost-effectiveness, cost-utility, cost-benefit, and economic modeling. Topics include health-state utility measures, the quality-adjusted life year (QALY), uncertainty analysis, discounting, decision tree analysis, and Markov modeling.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Economic evaluation is the comparative analysis of alternative courses of action in terms of both their costs and consequences. With increasing health care expenditure and limited resources, it is important for physicians to consider the economic impact of their interventions. Understanding common methodology involved in health economic evaluation will improve critical appraisal of the literature and optimize future economic evaluations.
authors.affiliation: Division of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Department of Surgery, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Lukerudmik@gmail.com
authors.forename: Luke
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Rudmik
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Drummond
mesh_terms: D003362:Cost-Benefit Analysis; D003695:Delivery of Health Care / Q000191:economics*; D017048:Health Care Costs; D005102:Health Expenditures; D006801:Humans; D018803:Models, Economic