1. Introduction -- 2. Central concepts -- 3. Implementation -- 4. A simple example -- 5. Analyses -- 6. Formulating the required equations -- 7. Efficiency and variance reduction -- 8. Validation -- 9. Special topics -- 10. Case study : breast cancer surveillance.

Background: Smoking is the leading cause of preventable death in the US. While one in five individuals smoke, and 70% of these indicate a desire to quit, 5% of unaided quit attempts succeed. Cessation aids can double or triple the odds of successfully quitting. Models of smoking-cessation...

Establishing efficacy relative to placebo is no longer sufficient for payers to agree to cover new interventions. Evidence from comparisons of competing interventions is increasingly important, although head-to-head studies are seldom available to inform decisions. In this article, we describe...

Background: IQWiG commissioned an international panel of experts to develop methods for the assessment of the relation of benefits to costs in the German statutory health-care system. <P>Proposed methods: The panel recommended that IQWiG inform German decision makers of the net costs and value of...</p>

Establishing efficacy relative to placebo is no longer sufficient for payers to agree to cover new interventions. Evidence from comparisons of competing interventions is increasingly important, although head-to-head studies are seldom available to inform decisions. In this article, we describe...