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 . (
The cost-effectiveness of hearing-aid fitting in the Netherlands.
OBJECTIVE To determine the cost-effectiveness of hearing-aid fitting . DESIGN Cost-effectiveness analysis using a Markov model based on aggregate data and results from a prospect i ve intervention study . SETTING The cost-effectiveness study was based in the general community . The prospect i ve study was hospital based , as 85 % of the first-time hearing-aid users attend a hospital in the process of  hearing-aid fitting . PATIENTS The prospect i ve intervention study included adult first-time hearing-aid users with no contraindications for hearing-aid use . INTERVENTION The usual process of hearing-aid fitting in the Netherl and s. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE Costs per quality -adjusted life-year ( QALY ) . The QALYs were based on EuroQol scores . We included direct and indirect costs in the analysis . RESULTS The mean improvement on the EuroQol measure was 0.03 ( 95 % confidence interval [ CI ] , -0.03 to 0.08 ) , and on the hearing-specific visual analog scale , 0.27 ( 95 % CI , 0.22 - 0.31 ) . The base-case outcome based on the EuroQol was 15 807/QALY ( US dollars 17 072/QALY ) ( CI , -24 239/QALY to 3718/QALY ) . CONCLUSIONS On the basis of this base-case estimate , fitting of hearing aids is considered a cost-effective health care intervention . The CI indicates that the result is not unambiguously positive , probably because the EuroQol lacked sensitivity for the evaluation of hearing-aid fitting . Until now , no study has found an effect of hearing-aid fitting on generic quality of life . Therefore , measures are needed that are suitable for the evaluation of the effects of interventions for sensory disabilities , such as the fitting of hearing aids , on generic quality of life
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 . (