title: Economic evaluations in gastroenterology in Brazil: A systematic review.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To systematically review economic evaluations in gastroenterology, relating to Brazil, published between 1980 and 2013.
  
  
  METHODS
  We selected full and partial economic evaluations from among those retrieved by searching the following databases: MEDLINE (PubMed); Excerpta Medica; the Latin American and Caribbean Health Sciences Literature database; the Scientific Electronic Library Online; the database of the Centre for Reviews and Dissemination; the National Health Service (NHS) Economic Evaluation Database; the NHS Health Technology Assessment database; the Health Economics database of the Brazilian Virtual Library of Health; Scopus; Web of Science; and the Brazilian Network for the Evaluation of Health Technologies. Two researchers, working independently, selected the studies and extracted the data.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We identified 535 health economic evaluations relating to Brazil and published in the 1980-2013 period. Of those 535 articles, only 40 dealt with gastroenterology. Full and partial economic evaluations respectively accounted for 23 (57.5%) and 17 (42.5%) of the 40 studies included. Among the 23 full economic evaluations, there were 11 cost-utility analyses, seven cost-effectiveness analyses, four cost-consequence analyses, and one cost-minimization analysis. Of the 40 studies, 25 (62.5%) evaluated medications; 7 (17.5%) evaluated procedures; and 3 (7.5%) evaluated equipment. Most (55%) of the studies were related to viral hepatitis, and most (63.4%) were published after 2010. Other topics included gastrointestinal cancer, liver transplantation, digestive diseases and hernias. Over the 33-year period examined, the number of such economic evaluations relating to Brazil, especially of those evaluating medications for the treatment of hepatitis, increased considerably.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Further studies are needed in order to ensure that expenditures on health care in Brazil are made as fairly and efficiently as possible.
authors: Luciana Bertocco de Paiva Haddad, Jose Antonio Turri, Department of Transplantation, Gastroenterology Division, University of São Paulo School of Medicine Hospital das Clínicas, São Paulo 05403-010, Brazil.
authors: Luciana Bertocco
authors: LB
authors: de Paiva Haddad
authors: Luciana Bertocco de Paiva Haddad, Jose Antonio Turri, Department of Transplantation, Gastroenterology Division, University of São Paulo School of Medicine Hospital das Clínicas, São Paulo 05403-010, Brazil.
authors: Tassia Cristina
authors: TC
authors: Decimoni
authors: Luciana Bertocco de Paiva Haddad, Jose Antonio Turri, Department of Transplantation, Gastroenterology Division, University of São Paulo School of Medicine Hospital das Clínicas, São Paulo 05403-010, Brazil.
authors: Jose Antonio
authors: JA
authors: Turri
authors: Luciana Bertocco de Paiva Haddad, Jose Antonio Turri, Department of Transplantation, Gastroenterology Division, University of São Paulo School of Medicine Hospital das Clínicas, São Paulo 05403-010, Brazil.
authors: Roseli
authors: R
authors: Leandro
authors: Luciana Bertocco de Paiva Haddad, Jose Antonio Turri, Department of Transplantation, Gastroenterology Division, University of São Paulo School of Medicine Hospital das Clínicas, São Paulo 05403-010, Brazil.
authors: Patrícia Coelho
authors: PC
authors: de Soárez
keywords: Brazil; Cost-benefit analysis; Costs and cost analysis; Gastroenterology; Health care costs