Deregulation of antibacterials is a recurrent topic in the debate on pharmaceutical policy. This article focuses on one aspect of pharmaceutical regulation, namely the requirement of a medical prescription for purchasing antibacterials. However, a strategy of deregulation should not only concern...

Objective: To document the influence of hospital prescribers on prescribing in general practice. Design and Participants: Five percent of members of the Irish College of General Practitioners (n = 92) prospectively recorded 40 consecutive prescriptions. Interventions: The name, dose and amount...

While fluoxetine is considerably more expensive than tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs), some previous studies have suggested that general medical expenditures are lower among patients treated with fluoxetine. In this study, computerised pharmacy and cost-accounting records of a large health plan...

Objective: To develop incidence-based estimates of the cost of several diabetes-related complications. Design and setting: This was a retrospective cohort study in a large health maintenance organisation. A total of 8905 patients with type 1 (insulin-dependent) and type 2 (non-insulin-dependent)...

Objective: The aim of the study was to measure the use and estimate the cost of HIV service provision in England. Design and Setting: Standardised activity and case-severity data were collected prospectively in 10 English HIV clinics (5 London and 5 non-London sites) for the periods 1 January...

Objective: Patients with cancer-associated neutropenia are at high risk of developing severe infections which can be fatal if treatment is not promptly administered. For this reason, fever is treated as soon as possible with broad spectrum antibacterial therapy. The objective of this study was...

This study assessed the willingness of parents to pay for a reduction in the postoperative emesis experienced by children. The willingness-to-pay technique was used to value the intangible benefits, such as relief from anxiety and discomfort, resulting from a reduction in postoperative emesis in...

Objective: The treatment costs for pressure ulcers and venous leg ulcers were estimated based on the hospital administrator's perspective in Germany. Design: A spreadsheet model using input data from various hospitals in Germany was developed. Interventions: Five currently used treatment...

Objective: The objectives of this study were 1. to develop a conceptual framework for selecting hospitals for unit cost estimates in national and international multicentre trials and 2. to test the impact of alternative hospital selection on the cost results. Design and setting: Within the...

The purpose of this study is to model the potential economic impact of viral load-driven triple drug combination (including a protease inhibitor) antiretroviral therapy on incremental drug and hospitalisation costs among individuals with HIV disease. Individuals included in the study were...