title: Cost-effectiveness Assessment of Cardiac Interventions: Determining a Socially Acceptable Cost Threshold.
abstract: Health care is a vital good for which there is an infinite demand. However, societal resources are finite and need to be distributed efficiently to avoid waste. Thus, the relative value of an intervention - cost compared to its effectiveness- needs to be taken into consideration when deciding which interventions to adopt. Cost-effectiveness analysis provides the crucial information which guides these decisions. As the field of medicine and indeed cardiology move forward with innovations which are effective but often expensive, it becomes imperative to employ these cost-effectiveness analytic tools, not with the intention of denying vital health services but to ascertain what the society willing to pay for.
authors.affiliation: Cardiology Section, Christiana Care Health System/Thomas Jefferson University,4755 Ogletown-Stanton Road, Newark, DE 19718, USA.
authors.forename: Chete M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Eze-Nliam
authors.affiliation: Cardiology Section, Christiana Care Health System/Thomas Jefferson University,4755 Ogletown-Stanton Road, Newark, DE 19718, USA.
authors.forename: Zugui
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Cardiology Section, Christiana Care Health System/Thomas Jefferson University,4755 Ogletown-Stanton Road, Newark, DE 19718, USA.
authors.forename: Sandra A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Weiss
authors.affiliation: Cardiology Section, Christiana Care Health System/Thomas Jefferson University,4755 Ogletown-Stanton Road, Newark, DE 19718, USA.
authors.forename: William S
authors.initials: WS
authors.lastname: Weintraub
keywords: Bypass surgery; clinical trials; cost-effectiveness; percutaneous coronary intervention; transcatheter valve therapy