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A Review and Critique of Studies Reporting Utility Values for Schizophrenia-Related Health States

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Abstract

Economic evaluation of health technologies in the form of cost-utility analysis is increasingly advocated. The most common outcome measure in this type of analysis is the QALY. In order to estimate QALYs, appropriate utility values are required.

The objective of this review was to identify and critique utility values for schizophrenia-related health states. A critical appraisal was performed on utility values for schizophrenia identified in the systematic literature review that informed the economic analysis of the updated edition of the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) clinical guideline on schizophrenia for England and Wales.

Seven studies reporting utility values for schizophrenia were identified. The studies employed a variety of methods for generating utility values. None of the reported sets of utility values for schizophrenia were generated using the EQ-5D, which is a measure widely used in cost-utility analysis and preferred by NICE. Nevertheless, the EQ-5D may be less sensitive in capturing aspects of health-related quality of life in patients with schizophrenia.

A condition-specific preference-based instrument may be more appropriate than a generic measure to inform cost-utility analyses of interventions for schizophrenia.

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Acknowledgements

The author would like to thank the Guideline Development Group of the updated edition of the NICE guideline on schizophrenia and especially Ms Sarah Stockton for developing the search strategies and conducting the database searches of economic evidence in the area of schizophrenia. Special acknowledgement is given to Dr Ilias Kazanis (University of Cambridge) for useful comments in the development of the manuscript.

The systematic literature review of utility values for schizophrenia was undertaken to inform the updated edition of the NICE clinical guideline on schizophrenia, developed by the National Collaborating Centre for Mental Health (NCCMH), commissioned and funded by NICE in the UK. The author is an employee of the NCCMH and participated in the development of the updated edition of the NICE clinical guideline on schizophrenia. The views expressed in this paper are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of NICE.

No sources of funding were used to assist in the preparation of this review. The author has no conflicts of interest that are directly relevant to the content of this review.

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  1. National Collaborating Centre for Mental Health, Centre for Outcomes Research and Effectiveness, Research Department of Clinical, Educational and Health Psychology, University College London, Gower Street, London, WC1E 6BT, UK

    Ifigeneia Mavranezouli

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Mavranezouli, I. A Review and Critique of Studies Reporting Utility Values for Schizophrenia-Related Health States. Pharmacoeconomics 28, 1109–1121 (2010). https://doi.org/10.2165/11537300-000000000-00000

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