Calculating Utility Gain by Different Methods

Cataract surgery and drug treatment for neovascular age-related macular degeneration (NVAMD) are among the most common evidence-based ophthalmic procedures and yield substantial benefit to patients. For vulnerable populations who are elderly or disabled and minority populations who have struggled to obtain access to appropriate care most of their lives, loss of sight is devastating, so providing timely treatment ought to be straightforward. However, cataracts and NVAMD mostly occur late in life, which means that these conditions compete with other concurrent serious comorbidities, and benefits are spread across far fewer years than for younger patients. As a result, quantifying treatment benefits becomes more complicated.
Source: JAMA Ophthalmology - Category: Opthalmology Source Type: research