Selected reviews of economic evaluations relating to cardiology

Study Question: To review the literature on the economic costs of cardio-vascular disease (CVD) in Canada and other developed countries (United States, Europe and Australia) published from 1998 to 2006, with a focus on Canada. Patient Group: Persons with cardio-vascular disease Key Results: A total of 1656 titles and abstracts were screened, of which 34 articles were reviewed including six Canadian studies and 17 American studies. Seven studies estimated the costs associated with CVD, 10 for stroke, nine for hypertension two for congestive heart failure and nine for CAD. There was substantial variation between studies due to different methods of analysis, time horizon and countries or settings, though all studies concluded that the costs of treating CVD-related conditions are significant from both a payer and societal perspective. Several USA studies using administrative databases have shown that the cost associated with CVD conditions are higher than other chronic conditions. Around 82% of studies did not provide any information on the predictors of costs and multivariable regression analyses were conducted in 13% of studies to identify factors influencing cost figures. Just 28% of studies conducted sensitivity analyses and indirect costs were evaluated in 33% of studies.