[Economic evaluation of cardiology; background and application]

Effectiveness research is increasingly attracting the attention not only of policy makers but also of the medical profession. Economic evaluation may provide structured information about the cost-effect balance of an intervention as compared with that of a different intervention. Costs can be subdivided into direct and indirect medical costs and direct and indirect non-medical costs. Effects are preferably expressed in life years gained (corrected for quality). A cost-effectiveness ratio indicates the additional costs per additional life year gained (corrected for quality). Economic evaluation can be performed using local, national or international research data. It may use studies that have been completed or in which the economic evaluation is included. A (planned) subgroup analysis may help to define a group of patients for whom the cost-effectiveness ratio is most favourable. The duration of a randomized clinical trial is usually relatively brief; with the aid of a mathematical model it is possible to collect the available information and to calculate extrapolations for longer periods.