Perspectivas para la Evaluación de Tecnologías en Salud: Perspectives for health technology assessment

An unplanned health care system is like a paper boat carried by a slowly sinking current. In times of disinformation and excessive distraction, investing in better facts on health technology assessment (HTA) will enable more active actions rather than reactive to the market dynamics. This paper aims to raise some reflections on HTA in terms of political context, health technologies and epidemiological priorities. The perspective of HTA is context dependent, intrinsic to its political and institutional articulation. At the moment, the paradox is to maintain a specialized structure in the face of economic austerity policies that reduce health resources, and a scenario of greater interest in raising public funds by the private sector. Particularly in Brazil, HTA will also have to deal with the gradual shift from a universal health system to a minimum portfolio of services offered by the private sector. The public sector will be requested for very expensive technologies, usually by judicial measures. The precariousness of work relationships will influence HTA workers because they will not have a link and identity with the health system. Thus, there will be more productive and less reflective HTA processes. The context of greater dependence on the private market will allow new problems with medical technologies to emerge, such as the opioid crisis in the United States.Un sistema de atención médica no planificado es como un barco de papel transportado por una corriente que se hunde lentamente. En tiempos de desinformación y distracción excesiva, invertir en mejores hechos sobre evaluación de tecnología de salud (HTA) permitirá acciones más activas en lugar de reaccionar a la dinámica del mercado. Este documento tiene como objetivo plantear algunas reflexiones sobre la ETS en términos de contexto político, tecnologías sanitarias y prioridades epidemiológicas. La perspectiva de la HTA depende del contexto, intrínseca a su articulación política e institucional. Por el momento, la paradoja es mantener una estructura especializada frente a las políticas de austeridad económica que reducen los recursos de salud, y un escenario de mayor interés en recaudar fondos públicos por parte del sector privado. Particularmente en Brasil, HTA también tendrá que lidiar con el cambio gradual de un sistema de salud universal a una cartera mínima de servicios ofrecidos por el sector privado. Se solicitará al sector público tecnologías muy caras, generalmente mediante medidas judiciales. La precariedad de las relaciones laborales influirá en los trabajadores de HTA porque no tendrán un vínculo e identidad con el sistema de salud. Por lo tanto, habrá procesos de HTA más productivos y menos reflexivos. El contexto de una mayor dependencia del mercado privado permitirá que surjan nuevos problemas con las tecnologías médicas, como la crisis de los opioides en los Estados Unidos

Adultos com depressão : prevalência no Brasil e em estudo de base populacional no Distrito Federal

Tese (doutorado)—Universidade de Brasília, Faculdade de Ciências da Saúde, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências da Saúde, 2013.Introdução: A depressão é um problema de saúde pública associado à incapacidade funcional e à elevada morbimortalidade. Apesar de comum, suas estimativas de frequência estão fragmentadas em diversos estudos, e o Distrito Federal carece de estimativas recentes. Objetivo: Realizaram-se duas pesquisas, uma para avaliar a prevalência de depressão em adultos (18 a 65 anos) em estudos realizados no Brasil e outra para estimar a prevalência e os fatores associados à depressão autorreferida em adultos residentes no Distrito Federal. Métodos: Na primeira pesquisa, conduziu-se uma revisão sistemática. Foram elegíveis estudos transversais de base populacional, sem restrição quanto ao idioma, data ou tipo de publicação. Até abril de 2013, pesquisou-se no MEDLINE, Embase, Scopus, LILACS, SciELO e Domínio Público. Após seleção pareada e independente, a qualidade metodológica dos estudos incluídos foi avaliada seguindo instrumento padronizado. Realizaram-se meta-análises a partir do modelo de efeito randômico de Mantel-Haenszel para obter a estimativa global, e metarregressões para investigar a heterogeneidade. Na segunda pesquisa, realizou-se um estudo transversal de base populacional, com amostragem probabilística, por conglomerados, em dois estágios. Partiu-se dos setores censitários urbanos e com mais de 200 moradores. Recrutaram-se adultos entre 18 a 65 anos. Considerou-se a depressão autorreferida como desfecho primário. A partir de uma análise hierarquizada em blocos e uma regressão de Poisson com variância robusta, calculou-se as razões de prevalência (RP) dos seguintes fatores associados: renda, escolaridade, ocupação, sexo, idade, estado conjugal, doenças crônicas autorreferidas, utilização de serviços de saúde e avaliação subjetiva do estado de saúde. Resultados: A primeira pesquisa selecionou 23 estudos (n = 455.058, 65,7% mulheres). A prevalência de depressão foi 13,7% (IC 95%: 12,5-14,9%; I² = 99,4%) na população geral; 18,8% (IC 95%, 16,9-20,0%; I² = 99,3%) em mulheres; e 6,8% (IC 95%: 5,9-7,7%; I² = 97,9%) em homens. Constatou-se tendência de aumento da prevalência com a idade de recrutamento no sexo feminino (p < 0,01) e de declínio no masculino (p = 0,02). A segunda pesquisa incluiu 1.593 adultos, dos quais 58,3% eram mulheres. A depressão foi autorreferida por 11,2% (IC 95%: 9,8-12,9%) dos entrevistados. A frequência em mulheres foi 14,6% (IC 95%: 12,0-17,6%) e em homens 7,7% (IC 95%: 5,6-10,2). A análise multivariada apontou os seguintes fatores estatisticamente significantes à depressão autorreferida: sexo feminino (RP = 1,8; IC 95%: 1,4-2,5), 50 a 65 anos (RP = 1,6; IC 95%: 1,1-2,2), hipertensão (RP = 1,6; IC 95%: 1,1-2,4), problemas cardíacos (RP = 2,0; IC 95%: 1,3-3,0), problemas respiratórios (RP = 2,9; IC 95%: 2,1-4,1), hospitalização nos últimos 12 meses (RP = 1,76; IC 95%: 1,2-2,5), limitações na realização de atividades habituais (RP = 2,0; IC 95%: 1,2-3,2) e dor/desconforto (RP = 1,6; IC 95%: 1,1-2,2). Conclusão: Apesar de a elevada heterogeneidade sugerir inconsistência dos resultados das meta-análises, os dados apontam elevado impacto da depressão na população adulta brasileira, afetando principalmente as mulheres com idade mais avançada. A depressão é uma doença frequente na população adulta do Distrito Federal. As mulheres e as pessoas entre 50 a 65 anos foram os mais susceptíveis. Os demais fatores identificados podem nortear ações de prevenção. __________________________________________________________________________ ABSTRACTIntroduction: Depression is a public health problem, associated to functional incapacity, morbidity and mortality. Despite being frequent, estimates of population prevalence are fragmented in several studies. Brasilia, the federal capital of Brazil, lacks recent estimates in the field. Objective: We performed two researches: the first assessed the prevalence of depression in adults (18 to 65 years old) in studies held in Brazil. The second estimated the prevalence of depression and associated factors in adults that live in Brasilia. Methods: In the first research we did a systematic review of cross-sectional, population-based studies. No restrictions of language, date, or publication type applied. We searched MEDLINE, Embase, Scopus, LILACS, SciELO, and Dominio Publico databases up to April 2013. After a duplicate selection of studies, their methodological quality was assessed following a previously standardized tool. We calculated meta-analyses using random effects model to obtain the overall estimate and metarregressions to investigate heterogeneity. In the second research, a cross- sectional, population-based study was held in Brasilia, following a probabilistic cluster sampling of two stages. Adults of 18 to 65 years old residents in census tracks higher than 200 inhabitants were eligible. The primary outcome was self-referred depression. Prevalence ratios (PR) were obtained through Poisson regression of robust variance following a hierarchical model to assess the association of the following factors: income, education, occupation, sex, age, marital status, self- reported chronic diseases, healthcare services utilization, and subjective health state assessment. Results: Twenty-three studies were included in the systematic review (n = 455,058; 65.7% women). The prevalence of depression was 13.7% (IC 95%: 12.5- 14.9%; I² = 99.4%) in the general population, 18.8% (IC 95%: 16.9-20.0%; I² = 99.3%) in women, and 6.8% (IC 95%: 5.9-7.7%; I² = 97.9%) in men. We observed a tendency of increase in the prevalence with higher recruitment ages in women (p < 0.01) and of decrease in men (p = 0.02). The cross-sectional study included 1,593 adults (women = 58.3%). Depression was self-reported by 11.2% (IC 95%: 9.8- 12.9%) of the participants. Prevalence in women was 14.6% (IC 95%: 12.0-17.6%) and in men it was 7.7% (IC 95%: 5.6-10.2). Multivariate analysis showed positive association of the following factors to self-reported depression: women (RP = 1.8; IC 95%: 1.4-2.5), age from 50 to 65 years old (RP = 1.6; IC 95%: 1.1-2.2), hypertension (RP = 1.6; IC 95%: 1.1-2.4), cardiac diseases (RP = 2.0; IC 95%: 1.3-3.0), respiratory illnesses (RP = 2.9; IC 95%: 2.1-4.1), hospital addition in the last 12 months (RP = 1.76; IC 95%: 1.2-2.5), limitation in usual activities (RP = 2.0; IC 95%: 1.2-3.2), and pain or discomfort (RP = 1.6; IC 95%: 1.1-2.2). Conclusion: In spite of the high heterogeneity that suggests inconsistency of the meta-analyses results, data shows a high impact of depression in Brazilian adults, mainly in older women. Depression is a frequent disease in adults that live in Brasilia, and women of older ages are more vulnerable. The other identified risk factors can be useful for planning prevention policies

Uncertainty in economic evaluation studies

Este artigo aponta três tipos de incerteza em avaliação econômica: metodológica, estrutural e paramétrica

Use of health services by adults in Manaus, 2019 Protocol of a population-based survey

Health services utilization is an indirect measure of the rights and equity of a health system. A 2015 survey conducted in the Manaus metropolitan region showed that in the previous year, over 70% of adults visited the doctor and 1 in 3 had visited a dentist. Socioeconomic factors and inequality played a central role in the usage of healthcare services and health situation in this population. Since then, political and economic crisis are evolving in Brazil. This project aims to estimate the prevalence of use of health services and the health status of the adults residing in Manaus in 2019. This is a population-based survey of adults (>= 18 years old) residing in Manaus. This survey will be conducted in the first half of 2019 with 2300 participants who will be interviewed at home, selected from a probabilistic sampling in 3 stages (census tracts, household, and dweller), and stratified by sex and age quotas based on official estimates. The participants will be interviewed using previously validated tools and questions employed in Brazilian official surveys, which will cover use of health services and supplies, health status, and lifestyle. Primary outcome will be any healthcare usage in the last 15 days. Associations between health services usage and socioeconomic data and health outcomes will be assessed using a Poisson regression with a complex sampling design correction. Results will be reported according to the strengthening the reporting of observational studies in epidemiology statement. This project was approved by the Ethics Committee of the Federal University of Amazonas, Manaus, Amazonas, Brazil. All participants will sign an informed consent before the interview. The results will be disseminated in peer-reviewed manuscripts, reports, conference presentations, and through the media9821CNPQ - Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico404990/2013–4; 448093/2014–

Health services utilization in the Brazilian Amazon: panel of two cross-sectional studies

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the use of health services among adults living in Manaus, Amazonas. METHODS: This was a panel of two cross-sectional studies conducted in Manaus in 2015 and 2019. Individuals aged ≥ 18 years were selected by probabilistic sampling and interviewed at home. The study outcomes were doctor visits and      hospitalizations in the previous 12 months, and unmet surgical needs. Variations between 2015 and 2019 were tested using chi-squared goodness-of-fit test. Poisson regression with robust variance was employed to calculate the prevalence ratios (PR) of the outcomes with 95% confidence intervals (95%CI). RESULTS: The surveys included 5,800 participants in total. Visits to the doctor decreased from 2015 (78.7%) to 2019 (76.3%; p &lt; 0.001), hospital admissions increased from 2015 (7.9%) to 2019 (11.5%; p &lt; 0.001), and unmet surgical needs decreased in the period (15.9% to 12.1%; p &lt; 0.001). These variations were particularly observed in vulnerable individuals – sicker; poorer; non-whites; and those belonging to lower social classes, with less access to education, formal jobs, and health insurance (p &lt; 0.05). Doctor visits were higher in people with fair health status (PR = 1.09; 95%CI 1.06–1.12), health insurance (PR = 1.13; 95%CI 1.09–1.17), and chronic diseases (p &lt; 0.001) but lower in men (PR = 0.87; 95%CI 0.84–0.90) and informal workers (PR = 0.89; 95%CI 0.84–0.94). Hospitalizations were higher in people with worse health statuses (p &lt; 0.001), without partners (PR = 1.27; 95%CI 1.05–1.53), and with multimorbidity (PR = 1.68; 95%CI 1.33–2.12) but lower in men (PR = 0.55; 95%CI 0.44–0.68), older adults (p &lt; 0.001), informal workers (PR = 0.67; 95%CI 0.51–0.89), and unemployed (PR = 0.72; 95%CI 0.53–0.97). Unmet surgical needs were higher in older adults (p &lt; 0.001), middle-class people (PR = 1.24; 95%CI 1.01–1.55), worse health statuses (p &lt; 0.001), and chronic diseases (p &lt; 0.001) but lower in men (PR = 0.76; 95%CI 0.65–0.86). CONCLUSIONS: From 2015 to 2019, less people visited the doctor, more were admitted to hospitals, and less were in need of surgery or aware of that need, potentially indicating poorer access to health services

Guía para relato de estudios de evaluación econômica

O estudo apresenta um roteiro para relato de estudos de avaliação econômica

Health economic evaluation studies : definition and applicability to health systems and services

O presente artigo inicia uma série de textos sobre os estudos de avaliação econômica. Nele são abordadas generalidades sobre o tema, entre as quais, os conceitos básicos e a sua aplicabilidade. Os próximos tópicos lidam com aspectos centrais da avaliação econômica, entre os quais se destacam os custos (diretos, indiretos e intangíveis), os desfechos em saúde (monetário, eficácia, efetividade e qualidade de vida), os modelos analíticos (árvore de decisão, modelos de Markov, eventos discretos e modelos dinâmicos) e as incertezas nos procedimentos (análise de sensibilidade determinística e probabilística). Espera-se que a série facilite o entendimento das bases da avaliação econômica e estimule a sua utilização por maior número de pessoas

Rifapentine for latent tuberculosis infection treatment in the general population and human immunodeficiency virus-positive patients : summary of evidence

Latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-coinfection are challenges in the control of tuberculosis transmission. We aimed to assess and summarize evidence available in the literature regarding the treatment of LTBI in both the general and HIV-positive population, in order to support decision making by the Brazilian Tuberculosis Control Program for LTBI chemoprophylaxis. We searched MEDLINE, Cochrane Library, Centre for Reviews and Dissemination, Embase, LILACS, SciELO, Trip database, National Guideline Clearinghouse, and the Brazilian Theses Repository to identify systematic reviews, randomized clinical trials, clinical guidelines, evidence-based synopses, reports of health technology assessment agencies, and theses that investigated rifapentine and isoniazid combination compared to isoniazid monotherapy. We assessed the quality of evidence from randomized clinical trials using the Jadad Scale and recommendations from other evidence sources using the Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluations approach. The available evidence suggests that there are no differences between rifapentine + isoniazid short-course treatment and the standard 6-month isoniazid therapy in reducing active tuberculosis incidence or death. Adherence was better with directly observed rifapentine therapy compared to self-administered isoniazid. The quality of evidence obtained was moderate, and on the basis of this evidence, rifapentine is recommended by one guideline. Available evidence assessment considering the perspective of higher adherence rates, lower costs, and local peculiarity context might support rifapentine use for LTBI in the general or HIV-positive populations. Since novel trials are ongoing, further studies should include patients on antiretroviral therapy

New horizons in health-promoting technologies : from development to rational use

This Research Topic covers 30 articles focusing on recent advancements related to the balance in innovation technology and the rational use of medicine for better decision making

Antioxidants for Preventing Preeclampsia: A Systematic Review

Objective. To investigate the efficacy of antioxidants for preventing preeclampsia and other maternal and fetal complications among pregnant women with low, moderate, or high risk of preeclampsia. Methods. We searched MEDLINE, Embase, CENTRAL, mRCT, and other databases, with no language or publication restrictions. Two independent reviewers selected randomized controlled trials that evaluated the use of antioxidants versus placebo and extracted the relevant data. Relative risks (RRs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) were calculated. The data were compiled through the random effects model. Main Results. Fifteen studies were included (21,012 women and 21,647 fetuses). No statistically significant difference was found between women who received antioxidant treatment and women who received placebo for preeclampsia (RR  = 0.92; 95% CI: 0.82–1.04), severe preeclampsia (RR  = 1.03; 95% CI: 0.87–1.22), preterm birth (RR  = 1.03; 95% CI: 0.94–1.14), and small for gestational age <10th centile (RR  = 0.92; 95% CI: 0.80–1.05). Side effects were numerically more frequent in the antioxidants group compared to placebo, but without significant statistical difference (RR  = 1.24; 95% CI: 0.85–1.80). Conclusions. The available evidence reviewed does not support the use of antioxidants during pregnancy for the prevention of preeclampsia and other outcomes