Condition-Specific Preference-Based Measures: Benefit or Burden?

Abstract

The introduction of PBMs that are specific to a certain disease may have the merit of sensitivity to disease-specific effects of interventions. That gain, however, is traded off to the loss of comparability of utility values and, in some cases, insensitivity to side effects and comorbidity. The use of a CS-PBM for cost-utility analysis is warranted only under strict conditions.

Treatment of advanced or recurrent cervical cancer with cisplatin or cisplatin containing regimens: A cost effective analysis

“…We did not adjust complication, recurrence, or survival rates for age, and we assumed that experiencing a grade 3 or worse complication did not affect recurrence or survival rates. Utility values were used from literature 8 .…”

Conducting Economic Evaluations Alongside Randomised Trials: Current Methodological Issues and Novel Approaches

“…A re-analysis of economic evaluation of an RCT comparing standard versus new antiepileptic drugs [38], revealed a different rank ordering of cost-effectiveness based on the NEWQOL-6D than with the EQ-5D, suggesting that selection of dimensions of health more relevant to epilepsy might affect policy choices. However the increased sensitivity of disease-specific preference-based outcome measures is traded against a loss of comparability of utility across different interventions and a potential insensitivity to side effects and /or comorbidities [39]. Further development of disease-specific utility measures, their comparison against generic instruments and impacts on decisions concerning technical and allocative efficiency is warranted.…”

Assessment of the construct validity and responsiveness of preference-based quality of life measures in people with Parkinson’s: a systematic review

“…Researchers were concerned that CS-PBM would lose the ability of comparability across disease areas, sometimes insensitive in measuring the side-effects which have differed symptoms from the condition, and lack of comprehensiveness in people with comorbidities due to the narrow scope [29,88]. However, the development of CS-PBM is argued to be valuable as it enriches the database of utilities measured by different approaches in a disease area where it exists limitations with current methods [29] and may provide valuable supplements to existing generic measures [88].…”

“…In recent years research has begun to bridge the condition-specific measures/attributes with valuations, examples of which include condition-specific preference-based measures (CS-PBM) [28] and adding condition-specific 'bolt-on' attributes to EQ-5D [18]. Despite issues around comparability across disease areas [29], such research is an attempt to complement the limitations of current methods.…”