RESULTS ( 1 ) EQ-5D was valid and responsive for skin conditions and most cancers ; in vision , its performance varied according to aetiology ; and performance was poor for hearing impairments .
The HUI3 performed well for hearing and vision disorders .
It also performed well in cancers although evidence was limited and there was no evidence in skin conditions .
Response mapping using all the domain scores was the best performing model for the EORTC QLQ-C30 .
In an exploratory analysis , a limited dependent variable mixture model performed better than an equivalent linear model .
3 ) The exploratory valuation study found that bolt-on items for vision , hearing and tiredness had a significant impact on values of the health states , but the direction and magnitude of differences depended on the severity of the health state .
The vision bolt-on item had a statistically significant impact on EQ-5D health state values and a full valuation model was estimated .
EQ-5D performs well in studies of cancer and skin conditions .
Mapping techniques provide a solution to predict EQ-5D values where EQ-5D has not been administered .
For conditions where EQ-5D was found to be inappropriate , including some vision disorders and for hearing , bolt-ons provide a promising solution .
BACKGROUND The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence recommends the use of generic preference-based measures ( GPBMs ) of health for its Health Technology Assessment s ( HTAs ) .
However , these data may not be available or appropriate for all health conditions .
OBJECTIVES To determine whether GPBMs are appropriate for some key conditions and to explore alternative methods of utility estimation when data from GPBMs are unavailable or inappropriate .
( 2 ) Potential modelling approaches to ' map ' EQ-5D values from condition-specific and clinical measures of health [ European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality -of-life Question naire Core 30 ( EORTC QLQ-C30 ) and Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy - General Scale ( FACT-G ) ] are compared for predictive ability and goodness of fit using two separate data sets . (
Counselling of hearing aid users is highly cost-effective
Hearing aids ( HAs ) are often left unused . Several investigations have shown that the use of HAs and the skills to use them can be significantly improved through counselling . Follow-up counselling is often restricted by increased cost . The objective of the study was to assess the cost and the effect of follow-up counselling  on HA use . In a prospect i ve pre-post design study , 98 first-time HA users were counselled 6 months after the fitting of a HA , and the use of and benefit from HAs were measured by means of an interview and the short form of the hearing h and icap inventory for the elderly ( HHIE-S ) and the EuroQoL ( EQ-5D ) question naires . The results obtained before and 6 months after counselling were compared and the cost of counselling was calculated . After follow-up counselling , over half of the occasional users of a HA and as many as one third of the non-users became regular users . The number of regular users increased by 16 subjects , and non-users decreased from 29 subjects to 17 . The HHIE-S results showed a significant positive change , but the EQ-5D results showed practically no change . The additional expense of follow-up counselling at home was approximately 8.8 % ( € 83 per visit ) of the calculated € 942 cost of fitting a HA . Bringing one unused HA into regular use required € 508 . The results show that HA use and the consequent benefit can be significantly increased through counselling . The expense caused by follow-up counselling at home is highly acceptable in addition to the cost of fitting a HA
RESULTS ( 1 ) EQ-5D was valid and responsive for skin conditions and most cancers ; in vision , its performance varied according to aetiology ; and performance was poor for hearing impairments .
The HUI3 performed well for hearing and vision disorders .
It also performed well in cancers although evidence was limited and there was no evidence in skin conditions .
Response mapping using all the domain scores was the best performing model for the EORTC QLQ-C30 .
In an exploratory analysis , a limited dependent variable mixture model performed better than an equivalent linear model .
3 ) The exploratory valuation study found that bolt-on items for vision , hearing and tiredness had a significant impact on values of the health states , but the direction and magnitude of differences depended on the severity of the health state .
The vision bolt-on item had a statistically significant impact on EQ-5D health state values and a full valuation model was estimated .
EQ-5D performs well in studies of cancer and skin conditions .
Mapping techniques provide a solution to predict EQ-5D values where EQ-5D has not been administered .
For conditions where EQ-5D was found to be inappropriate , including some vision disorders and for hearing , bolt-ons provide a promising solution .
BACKGROUND The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence recommends the use of generic preference-based measures ( GPBMs ) of health for its Health Technology Assessment s ( HTAs ) .
However , these data may not be available or appropriate for all health conditions .
OBJECTIVES To determine whether GPBMs are appropriate for some key conditions and to explore alternative methods of utility estimation when data from GPBMs are unavailable or inappropriate .
( 2 ) Potential modelling approaches to ' map ' EQ-5D values from condition-specific and clinical measures of health [ European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality -of-life Question naire Core 30 ( EORTC QLQ-C30 ) and Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy - General Scale ( FACT-G ) ] are compared for predictive ability and goodness of fit using two separate data sets . (