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Biomedical subjects

A J Jovell

Publications and source records attributed to A J Jovell.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2001

Screening and clinical management of prostate cancer. A cross-national comparison.

OBJECTIVES: The objectives of the study were to identify the current standards of clinical practice regarding prostate cancer screening in western Europe, Canada, and the United States, and to highlight major characteristics of current prostate cancer screening programs or patterns of practice. METHODS: We performed a semi-structured interview by means of a self-administered questionnaire sent by fax to 26 institutes pertaining to the International Network of Agencies for Health Technology Assessment. RESULTS: None of the countries surveyed had a formal national screening policy. Despite that, all the countries answering the questionnaire had discretionary, public-financed screening practices. Moreover, some scientific and professional organizations recommended population screening for prostate cancer, and few of the surveyed countries offered it as experimental practice within a randomized controlled trial. Survey results showed variation regarding screening policies, in particular test of choice, age cut-off points, and treatment prescribed for positive test results. CONCLUSIONS: Despite the lack of conclusive evidence on the benefits of prostate cancer screening, the availability of simple and easy-to-administer tests has lead to an enormous variation on screening policies around the world. Practice variations also affect prostate cancer therapy.

Canada↗
PubMed2000

Management of Helicobacter pylori in duodenal ulcer: a cost-effectiveness analysis.

BACKGROUND: Empirical eradication therapy of H. pylori has been proposed as a therapeutic alternative for duodenal ulcer. AIM: To identify the cost-effectiveness of empirical eradication therapy vs. test-and-treatment for the management of patients already diagnosed with a duodenal ulcer. METHODS: A decision analysis was performed to compare the cost-effectiveness of empirical eradication therapy of H. pylori diagnosed duodenal ulcer vs. eradication therapy after confirmatory diagnosis of Helicobacter pylori infection by means of several diagnostic tests. RESULTS: The empirical eradication therapy of duodenal ulcer was found to be the most effective and cost-effective strategy of all the alternatives. Amongst the alternatives, which included the previous performance of confirmatory diagnostic tests, the best cost-effectiveness ratio used a serology test. The model was robust in the face of changes in the values of therapeutic effectiveness, sensitivity and specificity of the diagnostic tests, prevalence of H. pylori infection in duodenal ulcer, duration of the antisecretory therapy, and number of medical visits. CONCLUSIONS: Based on our cost-effectiveness analysis, a treat approach is more effective and cost-effective than a test-and-treat approach in the clinical management of already diagnosed duodenal ulcer.

Cost-Benefit Analysis↗
PubMed2000

[Evidence of the therapeutic effect of antihypertensive therapy: meta-analysis and meta-regression of randomized and controlled trials].

BACKGROUND: Meta-analysis is one of the most useful methodologies in evidence-based medicine. The goal of this paper is to introduce meta-analysis and meta-regression in the synthesis of scientific evidence in the efficacy of antihypertensive therapy. METHODS: Data from 13 randomized controlled trial comparing active antihypertensive therapy with a non-therapeutic control have been analyzed. Data on trials following patients at least more than one year have been poole through random-effects models and meta-regression models. RESULTS: Pooled data from meta-analysis showed that antihypertensive therapy decreased the risk of adverse outcomes attributable to the disease, mainly stroke. Regression models indicated that this risk was independent from study duration and patients mean age. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study have showed the applicability and usefulness of data synthesis techniques in decision making in health care using hypertension as a case-study. This case-study allows us to make recommendations for research and therapy.

Aged↗
PubMed1999

[Efficacy and safety of thrombolytic therapy in pulmonary embolism: meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials].

BACKGROUND: The role of thrombolytic agents in the treatment of pulmonary thromboembolism (PTE) remains a controversial issue. The objective of this study is to assess the efficacy and safety of thrombolytic therapy in the treatment of PTE by means of a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCT). METHODS: A bibliographic search of the main biomedical bibliographic databases was carried out and eight randomized controlled trials that fulfilled the inclusion criteria were found. Two blinded and independent evaluators assessed the quality of RCT according to Jadad scale, and selected the necessary data to fulfill the objective of this study. RESULTS: The selected trials were heterogeneous regarding the type of thrombolytic agent, the administration schedule, and the efficacy measures used. The methodological quality was 2 points in the Jadad scale as an average. No statistically significant differences in mortality nor in risk of PTE relapse were found between the group of patients receiving thrombolytic agents and the group not receiving them. Significant differences were found, however, between these two groups as regards the risk of bleeding events (OR = 2.62; CI 95%: 1.56-4.38). CONCLUSION: The results of these meta-analyses do not suggest the use of thrombolytic therapy in PTE in everyday clinical practice since measurable risks overcome potential benefits.

Fibrinolytic Agents↗
PubMed1999

Which statin is most efficient for the treatment of hypercholesterolemia? A cost-effectiveness analysis.

A review of the cost-effectiveness literature indicated that the hydroxymethylglutaryl coenzyme A-reductase inhibitor fluvastatin is more cost-effective for achieving minor-to-moderate reductions in low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) levels than 3 other statins: lovastatin, pravastatin, and simvastatin. The main goal of this study was to verify the applicability of these conclusions to Spanish health care costs and patterns of resource consumption related to the treatment of hypercholesterolemia. A stochastic simulation model was used to predict both the costs and effects of treating high-risk hypercholesterolemic patients with fluvastatin, lovastatin, pravastatin, or simvastatin. Epidemiologic data were used to find a suitable theoretic probability distribution model for baseline LDL-C values in high-risk hypercholesterolemic patients. The model was then used to generate 10,000 random observations of baseline LDL-C values; the corresponding LDL-C values after a 2-year treatment period were predicted as a function of the baseline value and the percentage reduction expected with a particular statin and dose, according to the results obtained in 2 meta-analyses. The probability of treatment discontinuation was also taken into account using estimates obtained in usual practice. The effects of treatment were expressed as the rate of success in achieving the goal level of LDL-C, as defined in the current Spanish recommendations for the treatment of hypercholesterolemia. The average costs of treatment were computed from both the social and public-financing perspectives, including the cost of lipid-lowering drugs, physician visits, laboratory tests, and days off work, as appropriate. The occurrence of nonscheduled visits and workdays lost because of side effects were taken into account to compute indirect costs relevant to the social perspective. The potential costs of treating side effects were ignored. A cost-effectiveness analysis was performed to compare the cost-effectiveness ratios obtained with each of the 4 statins considered in this study. Model-based predictions of the effects, total costs, and cost-effectiveness ratios were made. Cost-effectiveness ratios were interpreted as the cost per patient meeting the goal of therapy, according to current Spanish recommendations. The data showed that fluvastatin had the lowest cost-effectiveness ratios when LDL-C levels required reduction to < or =25% of baseline levels. In this situation, fluvastatin was more cost-effective than lovastatin, pravastatin, or simvastatin from public-financing and social perspectives.

Administration, Oral↗
PubMed1999

The Spanish health care system: lessons for newly industrialized countries.

This article summarizes the organization, financing, and delivery of health care services in Spain, and discusses the elements that made it possible to maintain high levels of health among the population, while spending comparatively fewer resources on the health care system than most industrialized countries. The case of Spain is of particular interest for newly industrialized countries, because of the fast evolution that it has undergone in recent years. Considered, by United Nations' economic standards, a developing country until 1964, Spain became in a few years the fastest growing economy in the world after Japan. By the early 1970s the infant mortality rate was already lower than in Britain or the United States.

Delivery of Health Care↗
PubMed1999

[Scientific evidence and antimicrobial therapy: A perfect couple?].

BACKGROUND: The dynamics of infectious diseases at the end of the century claims for the use of evidence-based medicine in clinical and public health decision-making. METHODS: Description of the methodological process of a systematic review of the evidence. RESULTS: Description of the stages of a systematic review of the evidence taking as case-study an example of the prevention of respiratory infection in acute care unit patients. CONCLUSION: The case-study described allows us to make recommendations based on the value of evidence to make clinical decisions on the use of antimicrobial therapy.

Anti-Bacterial Agents↗
PubMed1999

[The other side of the coin: socioeconomic analysis of antibiotic resistance].

BACKGROUND: The re-emergence of bacterial diseases and their negative consequences in terms of health and economic cost, have made this issue an important public health problem. The objective of this work is to review the economic literature about antibiotic resistance, and to suggest possible solutions in our health care context aimed to reduce their negative impact. METHODS: We made a bibliographic search in the main biomedical databases. Economic assessment studies published in Spanish, English, French or Italian and related to the appearance of antibiotic resistance were selected. Their main methodological characteristics and results were analysed. RESULTS: Two studies analysing the economic impact of the appearance of antibiotic resistance were identified. A minimum hospital cost of 1300 million dollars (in 1992), and a social cost between 100 and 30,000 million dollars (in 1989) were estimated. CONCLUSIONS: Economic analysis allows to quantify and assess the impact of several management strategies in relation with antibiotic administration, in terms of health and costs, and to choose the most cost-effective strategies. The identification of inappropriate consumption of antibiotics as a cause of a negative externality upon the rest of the society is basic to make health care professionals and public opinion conscious about this problem, and to develop strategies to reduce its negative impact.

Anti-Bacterial Agents↗
PubMed1998

Trade-offs in prenatal detection of Down syndrome.

OBJECTIVES: This paper presents the results of different screening policies for prenatal detection of Down syndrome that would allow decision makers to make informed choices. METHODS: A decision analysis model was built to compare 8 screening policies with regard to a selected set of outcome measures. Probabilities used in the analysis were obtained from official administrative data reports in Spain and Catalonia and from data published in the medical literature. Sensitivity analyses were carried out to test the robustness of screening policies' results to changes in uptake rates, diagnostic accuracy, and resources consumed. RESULTS: Selected screening policies posed major trades-offs regarding detection rates, false-positive results, fetal loss, and costs of the programs. All outcome measures considered were found quite robust to changes in uptake rates. Sensitivity and specificity rates of screening tests were shown to be the most influential factors in the outcome measures considered. CONCLUSIONS: The disclosed trade-offs emphasize the need to comprehensively inform decision makers about both positive and negative consequences of adopting one screening policy or another.

Abortion, Spontaneous↗
PubMed1996

[Appropriate use and effectiveness of chronic domiciliary oxygen therapy in Catalonia].

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to study the pattern of the use of chronic domiciliary oxigenotherapy (CDO) in Catalonia, Spain. METHODS: A transversal study including 110 patients randomly selected from a list of all the subjects with CDO (n = 3,585) was made. A domiciliary survey on the characteristics of the indication for CDO and its fulfillment was carried out. Two pulsioximetries were also performed one breathing room air and another with oxigen. RESULTS: Of the 70 eligible patients the following factors were simultaneously observed in only 14 (20% of the total): adequate indication for CDO, use of oxigen at a flow which corrected the hypoxemia, and prescription fulfillment. The most important cause of inadequate usage of CDO was inappropriate indication since only 19 patients (27%) presented SaO2 less than or equal to 88%. Hypoxemia was not corrected in four of these 19 patients. Thirty-seven percent of the total admitted bad fulfillment, bot only one of the 15 patients with SaO2 less than or equal to 88% and in whom hypoxemia was corrected, recognized bad fulfillment. Sixty-nine percent of the patients had a document explaining the way and length of time they should receive the oxigen. CONCLUSIONS: The inappropriate indication of CDO is the main factor influencing the low effectiveness of chronic domiciliary oxigenotherapy in Catalonia.

Aged↗
PubMed1994

HIV screening of surgeons and dentists: a cost-effectiveness analysis.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the cost-effectiveness of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) screening strategies of surgeons and dentists. DESIGN: We constructed a model to project costs and HIV transmissions prevented over 15 years for four screening scenarios: 1) one-time voluntary screening, 2) one-time mandatory screening, 3) annual voluntary screening, and 4) annual mandatory screening. One-time screening occurs only in the first year of the program; annual screening occurs once each year. Under mandatory screening, all practitioners are tested and risks of practitioner-to-patient transmission are eliminated for all practitioners testing positive. Voluntary screening assumes 90% of HIV-positive and 50% of HIV-negative practitioners are tested, and risks of transmission in the clinical setting are eliminated for 90% of HIV-positive surgeons and dentists. All costs and benefits are discounted at 5% per annum over 15 years. RESULTS: Using "best-case" scenario assumptions, we find for surgeons that a one-time voluntary screening program would be most cost-effective, at $899,336 for every HIV transmission prevented. For dentists, the one-time voluntary program also is the most cost-effective, at $139,571 per transmission prevented. Annual mandatory programs were least cost-effective for both surgeons and dentists, at $63.3 million and $2.2 million per transmission prevented, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: HIV screening of surgeons and dentists ranks among the more expensive medical lifesaving programs, even using liberal assumptions about program effectiveness. Frequency of screening and whether testing is mandatory or voluntary dramatically affect cost per transmission prevented; these features should be considered carefully in designing specific HIV screening programs.

AIDS Serodiagnosis↗