Table 1.

Overview of forms of economic evaluation

Form of evaluation	Use for decision making	Measurement of health effects	Economic summary measure
Cost-consequences analysis	Comparison of implementation strategies that have disparate outcomes	Any measure	Not applicable
Cost-effectiveness analysis	Comparison of implementation strategies that produce a common outcome	Process measures (e.g., professional guidance adherence, patient compliance to medication) or health effects (intermediate or final), measured in natural units	Cost-effectiveness ratio (e.g., cost per case averted, cost per life-year saved), at patient or population level
Cost-utility analysis	Comparison of implementation strategies that have morbidity and mortality outcomes	Final health outcomes, including health status, patient preferences, utilities	Cost per quality-adjusted life-year, at patient or population level
Cost-benefit analysis	Comparison of implementation strategies with different units of outcome (health and nonhealth)	Monetary units	Net health benefit or net monetary benefit, at patient or population level
Cost analysis	Comparison of net cost of implementation strategies with equivalent outcomes	Not applicable	Net cost or cost of illness, at patient or population level