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Methods for Measuring Temporary Health States for Cost-Utility Analyses

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Abstract

A variety of methods are available to measure preferences for temporary health states for cost-utility analyses. The objectives of this review were to summarize the available temporary health-state valuation methods, identify advantages and disadvantages of each, and identify areas for future research.

We describe the key aspects of each method and summarize advantages and disadvantages of each method in terms of consistency with QALY theory, relevance to temporary health-state-specific domains, ease of use, time preference, and performance in validation studies. Two broad categories of methods were identified: traditional and adapted.

Traditional methods were health status instruments, time trade-off (TTO), and the standard gamble (SG). Methods adapted specifically for temporary health-state valuation were TTO with specified duration of the health state, TTO with a lifespan modification, waiting trade-off, chained approaches for TTO and SG, and sleep trade-off.

Advantages and disadvantages vary by method and no ‘gold standard’ method emerged. Selection of a method to value temporary health states will depend on the relative importance of the following considerations: ability to accurately capture the unique characteristics of the temporary health state, level of respondent burden and cognition, theoretical consistency of elicited preference values with the overall purpose of the study, and resources available for study development and data collection. Further research should focus on evaluating validity, reliability and feasibility of temporary health-state valuation methods.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Preferences Working Group, Center for Health Decision Science, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts, USA

    Davene R. Wright, Eve Wittenberg, J. Shannon Swan, Rebecca A. Miksad &  Lisa A. Prosser

  2. Schneider Institutes for Health Policy, Heller School for Social Policy and Management, Brandeis University, Waltham, Massachusetts, USA

    Eve Wittenberg

  3. Institute for Technology Assessment and Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA

    J. Shannon Swan & Rebecca A. Miksad

  4. Division of Hematology and Oncology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA

    Rebecca A. Miksad

  5. Center for Child Health Care Studies, Department of Ambulatory Care and Prevention, Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care, Boston, Massachusetts, USA

    Lisa A. Prosser

  6. Child Health Evaluation and Research Unit, Division of General Pediatrics, University of Michigan Health System, 300 N. Ingalls St, Room 6E14, SPC 5456, Ann Arbor, Michigan, 48109, USA

    Lisa A. Prosser

Authors
  1. Davene R. Wright
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  2. Eve Wittenberg
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  4. Rebecca A. Miksad
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  5. Lisa A. Prosser
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Correspondence to Lisa A. Prosser.

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Wright, D.R., Wittenberg, E., Swan, J.S. et al. Methods for Measuring Temporary Health States for Cost-Utility Analyses. Pharmacoeconomics 27, 713–723 (2009). https://doi.org/10.2165/11317060-000000000-00000

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