Economic Studies Part 2: Evaluating the Quality

As with clinical studies, health economic studies vary in scope and quality. Their usefulness for decision and policy making is linked to their methodological rigor, accuracy, and generalizability. Thus, critical appraisal is important to put the results in the context of study quality. Economic evaluations identify and compare appropriate alternatives of care, their incremental impact on health outcomes, and their incremental costs. As described in the first part of the series, there are several types of comprehensive medico-economic evaluations.