Measuring the benefits of treatment for psychosis: validity and responsiveness of the EQ-5D

Examining how well economic evaluations capture the value of mental health

Health economics evidence informs health-care decision making, but the field has historically paid insufficient attention to mental health. Economic evaluations in health should define an appropriate scope for benefits and costs and how to value them. This Health Policy provides an overview of these processes and considers to what extent they capture the value of mental health. We suggest that although current practices are both transparent and justifiable, they have distinct limitations from the perspective of mental health. Most social value judgements, such as the exclusion of interindividual outcomes and intersectoral costs, diminish the value of improving mental health, and this reduction in value might be disproportionate compared with other types of health. Economic analyses might have disadvantaged interventions that improve mental health compared with physical health, but research is required to test the size of such differential effects and any subsequent effect on decision-making systems such as health technology assessment systems. Collaboration between health economics and the mental health sciences is crucial for achieving mental-physical health parity in evaluative frameworks and, ultimately, improving population mental health.

Development and evaluation of a de-escalation training intervention in adult acute and forensic units: the EDITION systematic review and feasibility trial

Background

Containment (e.g. physical restraint and seclusion) is used frequently in mental health inpatient settings. Containment is associated with serious psychological and physical harms. De-escalation (psychosocial techniques to manage distress without containment) is recommended to manage aggression and other unsafe behaviours, for example self-harm. All National Health Service staff are trained in de-escalation but there is little to no evidence supporting training's effectiveness.

Objectives

Objectives were to: (1) qualitatively investigate de-escalation and identify barriers and facilitators to use across the range of adult acute and forensic mental health inpatient settings; (2) co-produce with relevant stakeholders an intervention to enhance de-escalation across these settings; (3) evaluate the intervention's preliminary effect on rates of conflict (e.g. violence, self-harm) and containment (e.g. seclusion and physical restraint) and understand barriers and facilitators to intervention effects.

Design

Intervention development informed by Experience-based Co-design and uncontrolled pre and post feasibility evaluation. Systematic reviews and qualitative interviews investigated contextual variation in use and effects of de-escalation. Synthesis of this evidence informed co-design of an intervention to enhance de-escalation. An uncontrolled feasibility trial of the intervention followed. Clinical outcome data were collected over 24 weeks including an 8-week pre-intervention phase, an 8-week embedding and an 8-week post-intervention phase.

Setting

Ten inpatient wards (including acute, psychiatric intensive care, low, medium and high secure forensic) in two United Kingdom mental health trusts.

Participants

In-patients, clinical staff, managers, carers/relatives and training staff in the target settings.

Interventions

Enhancing de-escalation techniques in adult acute and forensic units: Development and evaluation of an evidence-based training intervention (EDITION) interventions included de-escalation training, two novel models of reflective practice, post-incident debriefing and feedback on clinical practice, collaborative prescribing and ward rounds, practice changes around admission, shift handovers and the social and physical environment, and sensory modulation and support planning to reduce patient distress.

Main outcome measures

Outcomes measured related to feasibility (recruitment and retention, completion of outcome measures), training outcomes and clinical and safety outcomes. Conflict and containment rates were measured via the Patient-Staff Conflict Checklist. Clinical outcomes were measured using the Attitudes to Containment Measures Questionnaire, Attitudes to Personality Disorder Questionnaire, Violence Prevention Climate Scale, Capabilities, Opportunities, and Motivation Scale, Coercion Experience Scale and Perceived Expressed Emotion in Staff Scale.

Results

Completion rates of the proposed primary outcome were very good at 68% overall (excluding remote data collection), which increased to 76% (excluding remote data collection) in the post-intervention period. Secondary outcomes had high completion rates for both staff and patient respondents. Regression analyses indicated that reductions in conflict and containment were both predicted by study phase (pre, embedding, post intervention). There were no adverse events or serious adverse events related to the intervention.

Conclusions

Intervention and data-collection procedures were feasible, and there was a signal of an effect on the proposed primary outcome.

Limitations

Uncontrolled design and self-selecting sample.

Future work

Definitive trial determining intervention effects.

Trial registration

This trial is registered as ISRCTN12826685 (closed to recruitment).

Funding

This award was funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Health Technology Assessment programme (NIHR award ref: 16/101/02) and is published in full in Health Technology Assessment; Vol. 28, No. 3. See the NIHR Funding and Awards website for further award information.

Context

Conflict (a term used to describe a range of potentially unsafe events including violence, self-harm, rule-breaking, medication refusal, illicit drug and alcohol use and absconding) in mental health settings causes serious physical and psychological harm. Containment interventions which are intended to minimise harm from violence (and other conflict behaviours) such as restraint, seclusion and rapid tranquilisation can result in serious injuries to patients and, occasionally, death. Involvement in physical restraint is the most common cause of serious physical injury to National Health Service mental health staff in the United Kingdom. Violence to staff results in substantial costs to the health service in sickness and litigation payments. Containment interventions are also expensive (e.g. physical restraint costs mental health services £6.1 million and enhanced observations £88 million per annum). Despite these harms, recent findings indicate containment interventions such as seclusion and physical restraint continue to be used frequently in mental health settings. Clinical trials have demonstrated that interventions can reduce containment without increasing violence and other conflict behaviours (e.g. verbal aggression, self-harm). Substantial cost-savings result from reducing containment use. De-escalation, as an intervention to manage aggression and potential violence without restrictive practices, is a core intervention. 'De-escalation' is a collective term for a range of psychosocial techniques designed to reduce distress and anger without the need to use 'containment' interventions (measures to prevent harm through restricting a person's ability to act independently, such as physical restraint and seclusion). Evidence indicates that de-escalation involves ensuring conditions for safe intervention and effective communication are established, clarifying and attempting to resolve the patient's concern, conveyance of respect and empathy and regulating unhelpful emotions such as anxiety and anger. Despite featuring prominently in clinical guidelines and training policy domestically and internationally and being a component of mandatory National Health Service training, there is no evidence-based model on which to base training. A systematic review of de-escalation training effectiveness and acceptability conducted in 2015 concluded: (1) no model of training has demonstrated effectiveness in a sufficiently rigorous evaluation, (2) the theoretical underpinning of evaluated models was often unclear and (3) there has been inadequate investigation of the characteristics of training likely to enhance acceptability and uptake. Despite all National Health Service staff being trained in de-escalation there have been no high-quality trials evaluating the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of training. Feasibility studies are needed to establish whether it is possible to conduct a definitive trial that can determine the clinical, safety and cost-effectiveness of this intervention.

Which psychological interventions improve quality of life in patients with schizophrenia-spectrum disorders? A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

Quality of life (QoL) is a major patient reported outcome used to measure the psychological treatments success in people with schizophrenia-spectrum disorders. To date, the specific impact of different interventions on QoL remains undefined. A meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials (RCTs) was carried out for this purpose. We searched Proquest, PUBMED/MEDLINE, PsycINFO, WOS, Scopus, the Cochrane Library for RCTs published until January 2023. We used multilevel meta-analysis to examine differences between intervention effectiveness of experimental and control conditions whilst accounting for data dependencies. By means of subgroup analyses, we investigated influences of intervention types (i.e. psychoeducation v. CBT v. cognitive v. combination of several types v. other, such as psychodynamic, systemic, etc.) and continuous moderators were examined with precision-weighted meta-regressions. The generalizability of results across moderators, their combinations, and analytical approaches was investigated with multiverse meta-analyses. We examined data of 60 independent studies, reporting intervention effects for objective and subjective QoL (k = 19 and 70 effect sizes based on N = 1024 and 6254 participants, respectively). Overall, psychological interventions seemed to be more effective for objective than for subjective QoL. However, specific intervention results were differentiated, suggesting largest effects of psychoeducation on objective and combined interventions on subjective QoL. Our findings suggest that QoL is a valid outcome criterion for testing intervention effectiveness, as it is sensitive to change. Additionally, psychological interventions can improve patients' QoL, though the effects are small. Further testing of less widely used interventions and a shift toward the multidimensional nature of QoL is still necessary.

Measuring quality of life for people with common mental health problems

BACKGROUND

It is important to identify valid and acceptable outcome measures so that interventions evaluating common mental health problems can be assessed appropriately. Some advocate the use of generic preference-based measures claimed to be applicable for all health interventions, but others argue that they are insensitive for common mental health problems. The aim of this paper is to evaluate the Clinical Outcomes in Routine Evaluation-Outcome Measure (CORE-OM), to be used in cost-effectiveness studies in people with common mental health problems.

METHOD

The CORE-OM measure was tested for completeness, acceptability and responsiveness in a pilot study. Analyses for missing data, distribution of scores, and standardised response means (SRMs) were calculated.

RESULTS

Missing data did not exceed 5% for any of the CORE-6D items both at baseline and follow-up. The overall comprehension rate was high, and only 19 participants (14%) requested clarifications to complete the questionnaire. As expected in a feasibility study, there was a small and non-significant SRM.

CONCLUSION

CORE-OM is a valid and acceptable instrument to evaluate quality of life for people with common mental health problems. More research is needed with larger sample sizes to compare CORE-6D with other condition specific quality of life instruments.

A review of economic evaluations of health care for people at risk of psychosis and for first-episode psychosis

BACKGROUND

Preventing psychotic disorders and effective treatment in first-episode psychosis are key priorities for the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. This review assessed the evidence base for the cost-effectiveness of health and social care interventions for people at risk of psychosis and for first-episode psychosis.

METHODS

Electronic searches were conducted using the PsycINFO, MEDLINE and Embase databases to identify relevant published full economic evaluations published before August 2020. Full-text English-language studies reporting a full economic evaluation of a health or social care intervention aiming to reduce or prevent symptoms in people at risk of psychosis or experiencing first-episode psychosis were included. Screening, data extraction, and critical appraisal were performed using pre-specified criteria and forms based on the NHS Economic Evaluation Database (EED) handbook and Consolidated Health Economic Evaluation Reporting Standards (CHEERS) checklist for economic evaluations. The protocol was registered on the PROSPERO database (CRD42018108226). Results were summarised qualitatively.

RESULTS

Searching identified 1,628 citations (1,326 following the removal of duplications). After two stages of screening 14 studies met the inclusion criteria and were included in the review. Interventions were varied and included multidisciplinary care, antipsychotic medication, psychological therapy, and assertive outreach. Evidence was limited in the at-risk group with only four identified studies, though all interventions were found to be cost-effective with a high probability (> 80%). A more substantial evidence base was identified for first-episode psychosis (11 studies), with a focus on early intervention (7/11 studies) which again had positive conclusions though with greater uncertainty.

CONCLUSIONS

Study findings generally concluded interventions were cost-effective. The evidence for the population who are at-risk of psychosis was limited, and though there were more studies for the population with first-episode psychosis, limitations of the evidence base (including generalisability and heterogeneity across the methods used) affect the certainty of conclusions.

Social recovery therapy for young people with emerging severe mental illness: the Prodigy RCT

BACKGROUND

Young people with social disability and non-psychotic severe and complex mental health problems are an important group. Without intervention, their social problems can persist and have large economic and personal costs. Thus, more effective evidence-based interventions are needed. Social recovery therapy is an individual therapy incorporating cognitive-behavioural techniques to increase structured activity as guided by the participant's goals.

OBJECTIVE

This trial aimed to test whether or not social recovery therapy provided as an adjunct to enhanced standard care over 9 months is superior to enhanced standard care alone. Enhanced standard care aimed to provide an optimal combination of existing evidence-based interventions.

DESIGN

A pragmatic, single-blind, superiority randomised controlled trial was conducted in three UK centres: Sussex, Manchester and East Anglia. Participants were aged 16-25 years with persistent social disability, defined as < 30 hours per week of structured activity with social impairment for at least 6 months. Additionally, participants had severe and complex mental health problems, defined as at-risk mental states for psychosis or non-psychotic severe and complex mental health problems indicated by a Global Assessment of Functioning score ≤ 50 persisting for ≥ 6 months. Two hundred and seventy participants were randomised 1 : 1 to either enhanced standard care plus social recovery therapy or enhanced standard care alone. The primary outcome was weekly hours spent in structured activity at 15 months post randomisation. Secondary outcomes included subthreshold psychotic, negative and mood symptoms. Outcomes were collected at 9 and 15 months post randomisation, with maintenance assessed at 24 months.

RESULTS

The addition of social recovery therapy did not significantly increase weekly hours in structured activity at 15 months (primary outcome treatment effect -4.44, 95% confidence interval -10.19 to 1.31). We found no evidence of significant differences between conditions in secondary outcomes at 15 months: Social Anxiety Interaction Scale treatment effect -0.45, 95% confidence interval -4.84 to 3.95; Beck Depression Inventory-II treatment effect -0.32, 95% confidence interval -4.06 to 3.42; Comprehensive Assessment of At-Risk Mental States symptom severity 0.29, 95% confidence interval -4.35 to 4.94; or distress treatment effect 4.09, 95% confidence interval -3.52 to 11.70. Greater Comprehensive Assessment of At-Risk Mental States for psychosis scores reflect greater symptom severity. We found no evidence of significant differences at 9 or 24 months. Social recovery therapy was not estimated to be cost-effective. The key limitation was that missingness of data was consistently greater in the enhanced standard care-alone arm (9% primary outcome and 15% secondary outcome missingness of data) than in the social recovery therapy plus enhanced standard care arm (4% primary outcome and 9% secondary outcome missingness of data) at 15 months.

CONCLUSIONS

We found no evidence for the clinical superiority or cost-effectiveness of social recovery therapy as an adjunct to enhanced standard care. Both arms made large improvements in primary and secondary outcomes. Enhanced standard care included a comprehensive combination of evidence-based pharmacological, psychotherapeutic and psychosocial interventions. Some results favoured enhanced standard care but the majority were not statistically significant. Future work should identify factors associated with the optimal delivery of the combinations of interventions that underpin better outcomes in this often-neglected clinical group.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

Current Controlled Trials ISRCTN47998710.

FUNDING

This project was funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Health Technology Assessment programme and will be published in full in Health Technology Assessment Vol. 25, No. 70. See the NIHR Journals Library website for further project information.

EQ-5D-5L in Schizophrenia: differences between patients and nurses' reports

Purpose

To examine the differences between patient-reports and proxy-reports by nurses of EQ-5D-5L responses among patients with schizophrenia.

Methods

This study was conducted in June–September 2019 in Duren Sawit Regional Public Hospital in Jakarta, Indonesia. The self-report data were obtained by interviewing the patients and the proxy-report data were obtained from the psychiatric nurses. The patients’ Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) scores were obtained from their medical records. The data were collected in two time points: (1) when the patients moved from the acute to the quiet rooms (first-test) and (2) when they were discharged from the hospital (second-test). The self and proxy report scores were analysed by the Wilcoxon matched-pairs signed-ranks test and their relationship with the PANSS scores using Spearman's rank correlation coefficient.

Results

There were 206 patients in the final sample. The majority are male (56.8%) with a mean age of 37.5 years (SD = 12.05). Significant differences between the two reports were found in three domains (i.e., self-care, usual activities, and pain/discomfort) in the first-test and two domains (i.e., usual activities and pain/discomfort) in the second-test. Concerning the relationship with the PANSS scores, only three significant correlations were found, all in the proxy-version and in the second-test: mobility (r = 0.139), anxiety/depression (r = 0.2523), and utility scores (r = − 0.176).

Conclusions

The poor-to-fair agreement between patients and nurses reports and the poor correlation with the PANSS scores suggested that it is difficult to decide which report best represents the patients’ health status.

Psychometric Evaluation of the Chinese Recovering Quality of Life (ReQoL) Outcome Measure and Assessment of Health-Related Quality of Life During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Objective

The primary objective was to translate the Recovering Quality of Life (ReQoL) measures from English to traditional Chinese and assess their psychometric properties in Hong Kong (HK) Chinese population. The secondary objective was to investigate the mental health-related quality of life (HRQoL) of this sample during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

Method

Recovering Quality of Life was translated to Traditional Chinese adhering to standard guideline recommended by the official distributors. Five hundred members of the general population were successfully recruited to participate in a telephone-based survey. The following psychometric properties of the ReQoL were evaluated: construct, convergent, and known-group validity and internal consistency and test-retest reliability. The item measurement invariance was assessed on the basis of differential item functioning (DIF). Multiple regression analysis was used to assess the relationship between respondents' characteristics and mental HRQoL.

Results

Results of confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) supported a two-factor structure of the ReQoL. The ReQoL showed significant correlations with the other mental health, quality of life, and well-being measures, which indicated a satisfactory convergent validity. Known-group validity confirmed that ReQoL is able to differentiate between people with different mental health status. The (Cronbach's alpha = 0.91 and 0.76 for positive [PF] and negative [NF] factor), and McDonald's omega of 0.89 (PF = 0.94, NF = 0.82) indicated the ReQoL has good reliability as well as test-retest reliability with an intraclass correlation coefficient of 0.75. Four items showed negligible DIF with respect to age. Respondents who were highly educated and without psychological problems reported a high ReQoL score.

Conclusion

Traditional Chinese ReQoL was shown to be a valid and reliable instrument to assess the recovery-focused quality of life in HK general population. Future studies are needed to appraise its psychometric properties in local people experiencing mental disorders.

interRAI Subjective Quality of Life Scale for Mental Health and Addiction Settings: A Self-Reported Measure Developed From a Multi-National Study

Background: Measuring Quality of Life (QoL) in mental health using self-reported items is important for evaluating the quality of service and understanding the person's experience of the care received. Objective: The aim of this research was to develop and validate a self-reported QoL instrument for inpatient and community mental health settings. Methods: Data were collected from diverse research sites in Canada, Belgium, Russia, Finland, Brazil, and Hong Kong, using the 37-item interRAI Quality of Life Survey for Mental Health and Addictions. The survey was administrated to 2,218 participants from inpatient and community mental health settings, assisted living, and the general community. We randomly divided the sample into a training and a test sample (70 and 30%, respectively). We conducted principal component analysis (PCA) and exploratory factor analysis (EFA) using the training sample to identify potential factor structure. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) models were then fitted to finalize and externally validate the measurement model using training and test data, respectively. Results: PCA, EFA, and CFA of the training sample collectively suggested a 23-item scale measuring four latent constructs: well-being and hope (8 items), relationship (7 items), support (5 items), and activity (3 items). This model was supported by the CFA of the test sample. The goodness-of-fit statistics root mean square error, comparative fit index and Tucker-Lewis index were 0.03, 1.00, and 0.99, respectively. Estimated Cronbach's alpha based on the test data was 0.92. Raw Cronbach's alpha values for the subscales were 0.86 for well-being and hope, 0.86 for relationship, 0.69 for support, and 0.72 for activity. Conclusions: The interRAI SQoL-MHA scale is a valid instrument to measure QoL in mental health settings. The instrument will support the evaluation of the quality of care and can also be used for future research to produce SQoL-MHA values on a quality adjusted-life-year scale, facilitating the evaluation of various mental health interventions.

Group acceptance and commitment therapy for patients and caregivers in psychosis services: Feasibility of training and a preliminary randomized controlled evaluation

OBJECTIVE

Psychological interventions reduce the impact of psychosis, but widescale implementation is problematic. We tested the feasibility of group acceptance and commitment therapy for Psychosis (G-ACTp), delivered by frontline staff, and co-facilitated by service-user experts-by-experience (SU-EbyE), for service-users and informal caregivers (ISRCTN: 68540929). We estimated recruitment/retention rates and outcome variability for future evaluation.

METHODS

Staff and SU-EbyE facilitators completed 1-day workshops, then delivered closely supervised G-ACTp, comprising four sessions (weeks 1-4) and two boosters (10 and 12 weeks). Participants recruited from adult community psychosis services were randomized to receive G-ACTp immediately or after 12 weeks, completing outcome assessments at 0, 4, and 12 weeks. Service-use/month was calculated for 1-year pre-randomization, weeks 0-12, and 5-year uncontrolled follow-up.

RESULTS

Of 41 facilitators trained (29 staff, 12 SU-EbyE), 29 (71%; 17 staff, 12 SU-EbyE) delivered 18 G-ACTp courses. Participant refusal rates were low (9% of service-users [10/112]; 5% of caregivers [4/79]); 60% of those invited to participate attended ≥1 G-ACTp session (64% of service-users [39/61]; 56% of caregivers [35/63]). Randomization of facilitators and participants proved problematic and participant follow-up was incomplete (78% [66/85]; 82% of service-users [36/44]; 73% of caregivers [30/41]). Effect sizes ranged from very small to large mostly favouring treatment. Service-use reductions require cautious interpretation, as very few participants incurred costs.

CONCLUSIONS

Implementation appears feasible for service-users; for caregivers, retention needs improving. Outcome variability indicated n = 100-300/arm followed up (α = 0.05, 90% power). Methodological limitations' mean replication is needed: identified sources of potential bias may be reduced in a cluster randomized design with sessional outcome completion.

PRACTITIONER POINTS

Group acceptance and commitment therapy can be successfully adapted for people with psychosis and their caregivers. Implementation (training and delivery) is possible in routine community mental health care settings. Clinical and economic outcomes are promising, but replication is needed. Recommendations are made for future studies.

An item response theory analysis of an item pool for the recovering quality of life (ReQoL) measure

Purpose

ReQoL-10 and ReQoL-20 have been developed for use as outcome measures with individuals aged 16 and over, experiencing mental health difficulties. This paper reports modelling results from the item response theory (IRT) analyses that were used for item reduction.

Methods

From several stages of preparatory work including focus groups and a previous psychometric survey, a pool of items was developed. After confirming that the ReQoL item pool was sufficiently unidimensional for scoring, IRT model parameters were estimated using Samejima’s Graded Response Model (GRM). All 39 mental health items were evaluated with respect to item fit and differential item function regarding age, gender, ethnicity, and diagnosis. Scales were evaluated regarding overall measurement precision and known-groups validity (by care setting type and self-rating of overall mental health).

Results

The study recruited 4266 participants with a wide range of mental health diagnoses from multiple settings. The IRT parameters demonstrated excellent coverage of the latent construct with the centres of item information functions ranging from − 0.98 to 0.21 and with discrimination slope parameters from 1.4 to 3.6. We identified only two poorly fitting items and no evidence of differential item functioning of concern. Scales showed excellent measurement precision and known-groups validity.

Conclusion

The results from the IRT analyses confirm the robust structure properties and internal construct validity of the ReQoL instruments. The strong psychometric evidence generated guided item selection for the final versions of the ReQoL measures.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (10.1007/s11136-020-02622-2) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

A psychological intervention for suicide applied to non-affective psychosis: the CARMS (Cognitive AppRoaches to coMbatting Suicidality) randomised controlled trial protocol

BACKGROUND

Suicide is a leading cause of death globally. Suicide deaths are elevated in those experiencing severe mental health problems, including schizophrenia. Psychological talking therapies are a potentially effective means of alleviating suicidal thoughts, plans, and attempts. However, talking therapies need to i) focus on suicidal experiences directly and explicitly, and ii) be based on testable psychological mechanisms. The Cognitive AppRoaches to coMbatting Suicidality (CARMS) project is a Randomised Controlled Trial (RCT) which aims to investigate both the efficacy and the underlying mechanisms of a psychological talking therapy for people who have been recently suicidal and have non-affective psychosis.

METHODS

The CARMS trial is a two-armed single-blind RCT comparing a psychological talking therapy (Cognitive Behavioural Suicide Prevention for psychosis [CBSPp]) plus Treatment As Usual (TAU) with TAU alone. There are primary and secondary suicidality outcome variables, plus mechanistic, clinical, and health economic outcomes measured over time. The primary outcome is a measure of suicidal ideation at 6 months after baseline. The target sample size is 250, with approximately 125 randomised to each arm of the trial, and an assumption of up to 25% attrition. Hence, the overall recruitment target is up to 333. An intention to treat analysis will be used with primary stratification based on National Health Service (NHS) recruitment site and antidepressant prescription medication. Recruitment will be from NHS mental health services in the North West of England, UK. Participants must be 18 or over; be under the care of mental health services; have mental health problems which meet ICD-10 non-affective psychosis criteria; and have experienced self-reported suicidal thoughts, plans, and/or attempts in the 3 months prior to recruitment. Nested qualitative work will investigate the pathways to suicidality, experiences of the therapy, and identify potential implementation challenges beyond a trial setting as perceived by numerous stake-holders.

DISCUSSION

This trial has important implications for countering suicidal experiences for people with psychosis. It will provide definitive evidence about the efficacy of the CBSPp therapy; the psychological mechanisms which lead to suicidal experiences; and provide an understanding of what is required to implement the intervention into services should it be efficacious.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT03114917), 14th April 2017. ISRCTN (reference ISRCTN17776666 https://doi.org/10.1186/ISRCTN17776666); 5th June 2017). Registration was recorded prior to participant recruitment commencing.

Cognitive-behavioural therapy for clozapine-resistant schizophrenia: the FOCUS RCT

BACKGROUND

Clozapine (clozaril, Mylan Products Ltd) is a first-choice treatment for people with schizophrenia who have a poor response to standard antipsychotic medication. However, a significant number of patients who trial clozapine have an inadequate response and experience persistent symptoms, called clozapine-resistant schizophrenia (CRS). There is little evidence regarding the clinical effectiveness of pharmacological or psychological interventions for this population.

OBJECTIVES

To evaluate the clinical effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT) for people with CRS and to identify factors predicting outcome.

DESIGN

The Focusing on Clozapine Unresponsive Symptoms (FOCUS) trial was a parallel-group, randomised, outcome-blinded evaluation trial. Randomisation was undertaken using permuted blocks of random size via a web-based platform. Data were analysed on an intention-to-treat (ITT) basis, using random-effects regression adjusted for site, age, sex and baseline symptoms. Cost-effectiveness analyses were carried out to determine whether or not CBT was associated with a greater number of quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs) and higher costs than treatment as usual (TAU).

SETTING

Secondary care mental health services in five cities in the UK.

PARTICIPANTS

People with CRS aged ≥ 16 years, with an International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10) schizophrenia spectrum diagnoses and who are experiencing psychotic symptoms.

INTERVENTIONS

Individual CBT included up to 30 hours of therapy delivered over 9 months. The comparator was TAU, which included care co-ordination from secondary care mental health services.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES

The primary outcome was the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) total score at 21 months and the primary secondary outcome was PANSS total score at the end of treatment (9 months post randomisation). The health benefit measure for the economic evaluation was the QALY, estimated from the EuroQol-5 Dimensions, five-level version (EQ-5D-5L), health status measure. Service use was measured to estimate costs.

RESULTS

Participants were allocated to CBT (n = 242) or TAU (n = 245). There was no significant difference between groups on the prespecified primary outcome [PANSS total score at 21 months was 0.89 points lower in the CBT arm than in the TAU arm, 95% confidence interval (CI) -3.32 to 1.55 points; p = 0.475], although PANSS total score at the end of treatment (9 months) was significantly lower in the CBT arm (-2.40 points, 95% CI -4.79 to -0.02 points; p = 0.049). CBT was associated with a net cost of £5378 (95% CI -£13,010 to £23,766) and a net QALY gain of 0.052 (95% CI 0.003 to 0.103 QALYs) compared with TAU. The cost-effectiveness acceptability analysis indicated a low likelihood that CBT was cost-effective, in the primary and sensitivity analyses (probability < 50%). In the CBT arm, 107 participants reported at least one adverse event (AE), whereas 104 participants in the TAU arm reported at least one AE (odds ratio 1.09, 95% CI 0.81 to 1.46; p = 0.58).

CONCLUSIONS

Cognitive-behavioural therapy for CRS was not superior to TAU on the primary outcome of total PANSS symptoms at 21 months, but was superior on total PANSS symptoms at 9 months (end of treatment). CBT was not found to be cost-effective in comparison with TAU. There was no suggestion that the addition of CBT to TAU caused adverse effects. Future work could investigate whether or not specific therapeutic techniques of CBT have value for some CRS individuals, how to identify those who may benefit and how to ensure that effects on symptoms can be sustained.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

Current Controlled Trials ISRCTN99672552.

FUNDING

This project was funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Health Technology Assessment programme and will be published in full in Health Technology Assessment; Vol. 23, No. 7. See the NIHR Journals Library website for further project information.

Validation of the Finnish Health Improvement Profile (HIP) with patients with severe mental illness

BACKGROUND

Physical health among people with severe mental illness (SMI) is a global concern. However, many people with SMI do not receive regular comprehensive health checks. There is currently no validated physical health check instrument systematically used in Finnish mental health services. Therefore, this study aims to validate and establish the potential clinical utility of the translated Health Improvement Profile (HIP) tool for Finnish patients with SMI and compare differences in physical health risk items across genders.

METHODS

The content validity of the two-way translated Finnish HIP (HIP-F) was evaluated by five nurses and four patients with SMI using cognitive debriefing (to assess the clarity and relevance of each item and the recommended actions of the HIP tool). The potential clinical utility was assessed using a pilot test involving 47 patients. The prevalence of red-flagged (risk) items in the whole sample, across female and male participants, and the frequencies of any type of missing item response were calculated and analysed using descriptive statistics. A chi-square test was used to determine differences in frequencies of red-flagged items across genders.

RESULTS

Based on the cognitive debriefing, the HIP-F was found to have moderate content validity regarding the clarity and relevance of the items and recommended actions (the average scale level content validity index, S-CVI/Ave, 0.74). In the pilot test, some missing item responses were identified, but in the sample, nurses identified 399 areas of health and health behaviour risks (mean 8.6 per patient) using the HIP-F. The most frequently red-flagged items were body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference (83.0%), smoking status (48.9%) and lipid levels (46.8%). Female patients had a higher frequency of red-flagged items than males in BMI (92.6% vs. 70.0%, p = 0.04) and waist circumference (96.3% vs. 65.0%, p = 0.01).

CONCLUSIONS

The results demonstrate that the Finnish HIP has moderate content validity and preliminary clinical utility for evaluating the physical health and health behaviours of people with SMI. The HIP-F findings help to sign-post evidence-based interventions for identified areas of concern. Additional nurse training may be necessary to realise the potential clinical utility of the tool in Finland.

Proxy WHO Disability Assessment Schedule 2.0 Is Clinically Useful for Assessing Psychosocial Functioning in Severe Mental Illness

AIMS

This study explores how well the World Health Organization Disability Assessment Schedule (WHODAS 2.0) assesses problems with psychosocial functioning in patients with severe mental illness (SMI). Further, we assessed the relationships between psychosocial functioning and psychopathology, medication side effects, treatment setting, and quality of life.

METHODS

We performed an observational, cross-sectional study on the island of Curaçao to assess psychosocial functioning in 77 patients with SMI; they mainly had psychotic disorders. We interviewed their healthcare providers using the proxy version of the WHODAS 2.0. In addition, patients were examined for psychiatric symptoms, medication side effects (including drug-induced movement disorders), and quality of life. Associations were examined with Spearman's rank correlation (ρ).

RESULTS

Difficulties in psychosocial functioning were reported by patients with SMI in the WHODAS 2.0 domains of understanding and communicating [mean (M)=34.5, standard deviation (SD)=18.6), participation in society (M=25.5, SD=15.6), and getting along with people (M=24.1, SD=16.1)]. Notably, outpatients had more problems participating in society than inpatients (M=33.6, SD=18.5 versus M=23.2, SD=14.1, p=0.03). A positive correlation was observed between drug-induced parkinsonism and the WHODAS 2.0 total score (ρ =0.30; p=0.02), as well as with various subscales, getting around, and household activities.

CONCLUSION

The proxy version of the WHODAS 2.0 is clinically useful for patients with severe mental illness. The highest scores on the WHODAS 2.0 were found in domains related to interactions with other people and to participation in society. Inpatient status appeared to aid participation in society; this might be due to living in the sheltered clinic environment and its associated daily activities. We further found that drug-induced parkinsonism was associated with a broad spectrum of psychosocial disabilities.

CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION

ClinicalTrials.gov, identifier: NCT02713672; retrospectively registered in February 2016.

Correlation of Health-Related Quality of Life in Clinically Stable Outpatients with Schizophrenia

BACKGROUND

Generic health-related quality of life (HRQoL) scales are increasingly being used to assess the effects of new treatments in schizophrenia. The objective of this study is to better understand the usefulness of generic and condition specific HRQoL scales in schizophrenia by analyzing their correlates.

METHODS

Data formed part of the Pattern study, an international observational study among 1379 outpatients with schizophrenia. Patients were evaluated with the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Inventory, the Clinical Global Impression-Schizophrenia (CGI-SCH) Scale and the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) and reported their HRQoL using the Schizophrenia Quality of Life Scale (SQLS), the Short Form-36 (SF-36), and the EuroQol-5 Dimension (EQ-5D). The two summary values of the SF-36 (the Mental Component Score and the Physical Component Score, SF-36 MCS and SF-36 PCS) were calculated.

RESULTS

Higher PANSS positive dimension ratings were associated with worse HRQoL for the SQLS, EQ-5D VAS, SF-36 MCS, and SF-36 PCS. Higher PANSS negative dimension ratings were associated with worse HRQoL for the EQ-5D VAS, SF-36 MCS, and SF-36 PCS, but not for the SQLS or the EQ-5D tariff. PANSS depression ratings were associated with lower HRQoL in all the scales. There was a high correlation between the HRQoL scales. However, in patients with more severe cognitive/disorganized PANSS symptoms, the SQLS score was relatively higher than the EQ-5D tariff and SF-36 PCS scores.

CONCLUSION

This study has shown substantial agreement between three HRQoL scales, being either generic or condition specific. This supports the use of generic HRQoL measures in schizophrenia.

CLINICALTRIALSGOV IDENTIFIER

NCT01634542 (July 6, 2012, retrospectively registered).

Cost-effectiveness of care for people with psychosis in the community and psychiatric hospitals in the Czech Republic: an economic analysis

BACKGROUND

The absence of economic evidence hinders current reforms of hospital-based mental health systems in central and eastern Europe. We aimed to assess the cost-effectiveness of discharge to community care for people with chronic psychoses compared with care in psychiatric hospitals in the Czech Republic.

METHODS

We did a prospective study of people aged 18-64 years with chronic psychotic disorders in the Czech Republic who had been discharged into community services or were receiving inpatient psychiatric care for at least 3 months at baseline. We measured health-related quality of life with the EuroQol five-dimension five-level questionnaire. Adjusting for baseline differences between the two groups, we assessed differences in societal costs in 2016 and quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs) during a 12-month follow-up, which we then used to estimate the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER). We did multiple sensitivity analyses to assess the robustness of our results.

FINDINGS

In our baseline case scenario, we included 115 patients who were either community service users (n=35) or inpatients (n=80) at baseline. The two groups were similar in terms of baseline characteristics. The annual QALY was 0·77 in patients receiving community care at baseline compared with 0·80 in patients in hospital at baseline (difference 0·03, 95% CI -0·04 to 0·10), but the costs of discharge to the community were €8503 compared with €16 425 for no discharge (difference €7922, 95% CI 4497-11 346), such that the ICER reached more than €250 000 per QALY. This ICER is substantially higher than levels that are conventionally considered to be cost-effective and the estimated probability that discharge to the community was cost-effective was very high (≥97%). None of the sensitivity analyses changed these results qualitatively.

INTERPRETATION

This study provides economic evidence for deinstitutionalisation by showing that discharge to community care is cost-effective compared with care in psychiatric hospitals in the Czech Republic. These findings add to the human rights and clinical-based arguments for mental health-care reforms in central and eastern Europe.

FUNDING

Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports of the Czech Republic; EEA and Norway Grants.

Cost-effectiveness of early intervention services for psychosis and fidelity to national policy implementation guidance

AIM

Early intervention services (EIS) for psychosis are being implemented, internationally. It is important to learn from established examples and define the components and intensity of services that provide good value for money. This study aims to assess the cost-effectiveness of EIS according to how closely they adhered to the recommendations of the English Department of Health 2001 Policy Implementation Guide (PIG).

METHODS

EIS from the National Eden Study were assessed using a measure of fidelity to the PIG that rated the presence or absence of 64 recommended items relating to team structure and practice. EIS were then classified into three groups: those with fidelity of 75-80%, 81-90% and 91-95%. Patient-level resource use and outcomes were measured 1 year following inception into the service; costs were calculated and combined with quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) gained.

RESULTS

At a threshold of £20 000 per QALY, the 81-90% fidelity group had a 56.3% likelihood of being the most cost-effective option followed by 75-80% fidelity at 35.8% and 91-95% fidelity group (7.9%).

CONCLUSIONS

The results from England suggest that striving to maximize fidelity may not be warranted, but that dropping below a certain level of fidelity may result in inefficient use of resources.

Integrating Qualitative and Quantitative Data in the Development of Outcome Measures: The Case of the Recovering Quality of Life (ReQoL) Measures in Mental Health Populations

While it is important to treat symptoms, there is growing recognition that in order to help people with mental health problems lead meaningful and fulfilling lives, it is crucial to capture the impact of their conditions on wider aspects of their social lives. We constructed two versions of the Recovering Quality of Life (ReQoL) measure&mdash;ReQoL-10 and ReQoL-20&mdash;for use in routine settings and clinical trials from a larger pool of items by combining qualitative and quantitative evidence covering six domains. Qualitative evidence was gathered through interviews and focus groups with over 76 service users, clinicians, and a translatability assessment. Psychometric evidence generated from data from over 6200 service users was obtained from confirmatory factor models and item response theory analyses. In this paper we present an approach based on a traffic light pictorial format that was developed to present qualitative and quantitative evidence to a group of service users, clinicians, and researchers to help to make the final selection. This work provides a pragmatic yet rigorous approach to combining qualitative and quantitative evidence to ensure that ReQoL is psychometrically robust and has high relevance to service users and clinicians. This approach can be extended to the development of patient reported outcome measures in general.

Recovering Quality of Life (ReQoL): a new generic self-reported outcome measure for use with people experiencing mental health difficulties

BACKGROUND

Outcome measures for mental health services need to adopt a service-user recovery focus. Aims To develop and validate a 10- and 20-item self-report recovery-focused quality of life outcome measure named Recovering Quality of Life (ReQoL).

METHOD

Qualitative methods for item development and initial testing, and quantitative methods for item reduction and scale construction were used. Data from >6500 service users were factor analysed and item response theory models employed to inform item selection. The measures were tested for reliability, validity and responsiveness.

RESULTS

ReQoL-10 and ReQoL-20 contain positively and negatively worded items covering seven themes: activity, hope, belonging and relationships, self-perception, well-being, autonomy, and physical health. Both versions achieved acceptable internal consistency, test-retest reliability (>0.85), known-group differences, convergence with related measures, and were responsive over time (standardised response mean (SRM) > 0.4). They performed marginally better than the Short Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale and markedly better than the EQ-5D.

CONCLUSIONS

Both versions are appropriate for measuring service-user recovery-focused quality of life outcomes. Declaration of interest M.B. and J.Co. were members of the research group that developed the Clinical Outcomes in Routine Evaluation (CORE) outcome measures.

Using generic preference-based measures in mental health: psychometric validity of the EQ-5D and SF-6D

BACKGROUND

Generic preference-based measures (EuroQoL-5D (EQ-5D) and SF-6D) are used in the economic evaluation of mental health interventions. However, there are inconsistent findings regarding their psychometric properties.

AIMS

To investigate the psychometric properties of the EQ-5D and SF-6D in different mental health conditions, using seven existing data-sets.

METHOD

The construct validity and responsiveness of the measures were assessed in comparison with condition-specific indicators.

RESULTS

Evidence for construct validity and responsiveness in common mental health and personality disorders was found (correlations 0.22-0.64; effect sizes 0.37-1.24; standardised response means 0.45-1.31). There was some evidence for validity in schizophrenia (correlations 0.05-0.43), but responsiveness was unclear.

CONCLUSIONS

EQ-5D and SF-6D can be used in the economic evaluation of interventions for common mental health problems with some confidence. In schizophrenia, a preference-based measure focused on the impact of mental health should be considered.

Assessing adherence factors in patients under topical treatment: development of the Topical Therapy Adherence Questionnaire (TTAQ)

Medication adherence rates strongly depend on favorable disease outcomes. It is known that medication adherence rates are lower for topical treatment than for systemic treatment. However, to date no validated instrument for the assessment of adherence factors in topical treatment is available. The aim of this study was to develop a new questionnaire to assess adherence risk factors in topical treatment. The development of the Topical Therapy Adherence Questionnaire (TTAQ) and Patient Preference Questionnaire (PPQ) was based on a systematic literature review, and qualitative patient focus interviews and expert focus groups’ input. The psychometric properties and comprehensibility of the TTAQ and PPQ were assessed in a feasibility study with 59 psoriasis patients. Our first preliminary results indicate that the TTAQ and PPQ are psychometrically sound and reliable measures for the assessment of factors influencing topical treatment adherence. The questionnaires are currently being further developed and various parameters (e.g., time point of assessment) are currently being tested in an exploratory pilot study with ca. 2,000 psoriasis patients receiving topical treatment in a European clinical trial. The use of the final versions of TTAQ and PPQ in clinical practice may facilitate the early identification of specific non-adherence factors in patients under topical treatment, which could enable designing and applying adherence-enhancing interventions according to the patient’s individual needs.

EQ-5D as a measure of programme outcome: results from the Singapore early psychosis intervention programme

The current study aimed to establish the Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQoL) among participants with First Episode Psychosis (FEP) in Singapore, to elucidate the sociodemographic and clinical correlates of HRQoL, and ascertain the change after 1-year of treatment. Two hundred and forty one patients accepted into an Early Psychosis Intervention Programme (EPIP) from April 2009 to June 2011 and who had completed baseline EuroQol-5D (EQ-5D) assessments were included in this analysis. The mean (S.D.) EQ-5D index at baseline was 0.788 (0.258). One hundred thirty five (56.0%) patients who completed the EQ-5D assessment at the 12-month follow-up had a significantly higher EQ-5D index as compared to baseline. EQ-5D index was significantly higher among those patients who met criteria for remission at the 12-month interval than those who were not in remission. Our results suggest that the EQ-5D is responsive to improvement as it corresponded well to objective ratings of remission in our patients with FEP.

The validity and responsiveness of the EQ-5D measure of health-related quality of life in an adolescent population with persistent major depression

BACKGROUND

Despite a preference for economic evaluations to measure outcomes in terms of quality-adjusted life years, generic measures of outcome are rarely used in mental health research involving young people.

AIMS

To explore the validity and responsiveness of the EQ-5D measure of health-related quality of life in adolescents with major depression.

METHOD

Data came from a clinical trial involving adolescents with persistent major depression (n =  199). Construct validity was tested using socio-demographic constructs and baseline clinical outcome scores. To assess convergent validity, correlation between EQ-5D and clinical outcome scores was tested. To assess responsiveness, the mean change in EQ-5D scores of participants categorised as improved versus not improved on clinical outcome measures was tested.

RESULTS

Significant differences in mean EQ-5D score were found for co-morbidity and three of four severity measures but not gender, age, treatment history or suicide attempts. Mean EQ-5D scores were significantly correlated with all clinical outcome measures, although relationships were moderate or weak. A change in mean EQ-5D score was significantly related to clinical assessments of improvement on all outcome measures.

CONCLUSIONS

Results provide initial evidence to support the relevance of the EQ-5D in adolescents with major depression, but this evidence is weak. Replication studies are needed to assess the generalisability of these findings.

A multi-site single blind clinical study to compare the effects of prolonged exposure, eye movement desensitization and reprocessing and waiting list on patients with a current diagnosis of psychosis and co morbid post traumatic stress disorder: study protocol for the randomized controlled trial Treating Trauma in Psychosis

BACKGROUND

Trauma contributes to psychosis and in psychotic disorders post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is often a comorbid disorder. A problem is that PTSD is underdiagnosed and undertreated in people with psychotic disorders. This study's primary goal is to examine the efficacy and safety of prolonged exposure and eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) for PTSD in patients with both psychotic disorders and PTSD, as compared to a waiting list. Secondly, the effects of both treatments are determined on (a) symptoms of psychosis, in particular verbal hallucinations, (b) depression and social performance, and (c) economic costs. Thirdly, goals concern links between trauma exposure and psychotic symptomatology and the prevalence of exposure to traumatic events, and of PTSD. Fourthly predictors, moderators, and mediators for treatment success will be explored. These include cognitions and experiences concerning treatment harm, credibility and burden in both participants and therapists.

METHODS/DESIGN

A short PTSD-screener assesses the possible presence of PTSD in adult patients (21- to 65- years old) with psychotic disorders, while the Clinician Administered PTSD Scale interview will be used for the diagnosis of current PTSD. The M.I.N.I. Plus interview will be used for diagnosing lifetime psychotic disorders and mood disorders with psychotic features. The purpose is to include consenting participants (N = 240) in a multi-site single blind randomized clinical trial. Patients will be allocated to one of three treatment conditions (N = 80 each): prolonged exposure or EMDR (both consisting of eight weekly sessions of 90 minutes each) or a six-month waiting list. All participants are subjected to blind assessments at pre-treatment, two months post treatment, and six months post treatment. In addition, participants in the experimental conditions will have assessments at mid treatment and at 12 months follow-up.

DISCUSSION

The results from the post treatment measurement can be considered strong empirical indicators of the safety and effectiveness of prolonged exposure and EMDR. The six-month and twelve-month follow-up data have the potential of reliably providing documentation of the long-term effects of both treatments on the various outcome variables. Data from pre-treatment and midtreatment can be used to reveal possible pathways of change.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

Trial registration: ISRCTN79584912.

Cost utility of behavioural activation delivered by the non-specialist

Behavioural activation by non-specialists appears effective in the treatment of depression. We examined incremental cost-effectiveness of behavioural activation (n = 24) v. treatment as usual (n = 23) in a randomised controlled trial. Intention-to-treat analyses indicated a quality-adjusted life-year (QALY) difference in favour of behavioural activation of 0.20 (95% CI 0.01-0.39, P = 0.042), incremental cost-effectiveness ratio of £5756 per QALY and a 97% probability that behavioural activation is more cost-effective at a threshold value of £20,000. Results are promising for dissemination of behavioural activation but require replication in a larger study.

Mental health economics: current methodological issues

BACKGROUND

Investment in innovative mental health care services requires the use of scarce resources that could be used in alternative ways. Economic evaluation is essential to ensure that such an investment is appropriately compared with investment elsewhere.

METHOD

A non-systematic review of mental health evaluations identifies key methodological issues pertaining to economic studies.

RESULTS

Economic evaluations require the measurement and combination of costs and outcomes, and clarity about how this measurement is undertaken is required. Regarding costs, important considerations relate to the perspective to be taken (e.g., health service or societal), method of measurement (patient self-report or use of databases) and valuation (actual costs, fees or expenditure). Decision makers frequently need to compare evidence both within and between clinical areas and therefore there is a tension between the use of condition specific and generic outcome measures. Quality-adjusted life years are frequently used in economic evaluations, but their appropriateness in mental health care studies is still debated.

CONCLUSIONS

Economic evaluations in the area of mental health care are increasing in number and it is essential that researchers continue to develop and improve methods used to conduct such studies.

How valid and responsive are generic health status measures, such as EQ-5D and SF-36, in schizophrenia? A systematic review

OBJECTIVES

Generic health status measures such as the short form health survey (SF-36) and EuroQol-5D (EQ-5D) are increasingly being used to inform health policy. They are claimed to be applicable across disease areas and have started to be used within mental health research. This review aims to assess the construct validity and responsiveness of four generic health status measures in schizophrenia, including the preference-based SF-6D and EQ-5D.

METHOD

A systematic review of the literature was undertaken. Ten databases were searched from inception to August 2009 and reference lists scrutinized to identify relevant studies. Studies were appraised and data extracted. A narrative synthesis was performed of the evidence on construct validity including known groups validity (detecting a difference in health-related quality of life (HRQL) scores between two different groups such as samples from the general population and people with schizophrenia), convergent validity (strength of association between generic HRQL and other measures (e.g., symptom or functional), and responsiveness. Responsiveness was considered by: 1) differences in generic HRQL measure scores in responders/non-responders and 2) correlation between changes on generic HRQL measures and changes in specific measures obtained from patients and clinicians.

RESULTS

Thirty-three studies were identified that provided data on the validity and/or responsiveness of the instruments. Most of the evidence concerns the SF-36 and EQ-5D, and for these instruments there was evidence for known group validity. The evidence for convergent validity and responsiveness was mixed, with studies presenting contradictory results.

CONCLUSION

Although the evidence base is limited in a number of important respects, including problems with the measures used to develop constructs in the validation studies, it is sufficient to raise doubts about the use of generic measures of health like the EQ-5D and SF-36 in patients with schizophrenia.

Quantifying quality of life and disability of patients with advanced schistosomiasis japonica

BACKGROUND

The Chinese government lists advanced schistosomiasis as a leading healthcare priority due to its serious health and economic impacts, yet it has not been included in the estimates of schistosomiasis burden in the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) study. Therefore, the quality of life and disability weight (DW) for the advanced cases of schistosomiasis japonica have to be taken into account in the re-estimation of burden of disease due to schistosomiasis.

METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS

A patient-based quality-of-life evaluation was performed for advanced schistosomiasis japonica. Suspected or officially registered advanced cases in a Schistosoma japonicum-hyperendemic county of the People's Republic of China (P.R. China) were screened using a short questionnaire and physical examination. Disability and morbidity were assessed in confirmed cases, using the European quality of life questionnaire with an additional cognitive dimension (known as the "EQ-5D plus"), ultrasonography, and laboratory testing. The age-specific DW of advanced schistosomiasis japonica was estimated based on patients' self-rated health scores on the visual analogue scale of the questionnaire. The relationships between health status, morbidity and DW were explored using multivariate regression models. Of 506 candidates, 215 cases were confirmed as advanced schistosomiasis japonica and evaluated. Most of the patients reported impairments in at least one health dimension, such as pain or discomfort (90.7%), usual activities (87.9%), and anxiety or depression (80.9%). The overall DW was 0.447, and age-specific DWs ranged from 0.378 among individuals aged 30-44 years to 0.510 among the elderly aged ≥ 60 years. DWs are positively associated with loss of work capacity, psychological abnormality, ascites, and active hepatitis B virus, while splenectomy and high albumin were protective factors for quality of life.

CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE

These patient-preference disability estimates could provide updated data for a revision of the GBD, as well as for evidence-based decision-making in P.R. China's national schistosomiasis control program.

Is the EQ-5D fit for purpose in mental health?

The EQ-5D is a widely used questionnaire for calculating quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs) for assessing cost-effectiveness in healthcare. It reflects the impact of common mental health conditions such as mild to moderate depression but seems to be more problematic for use in people with psychotic and severe and complex non-psychotic disorders.

Cost-effectiveness of an early intervention service for people with psychosis

BACKGROUND

There is concern that delaying treatment for psychosis may have a negative impact on its long-term course. A number of countries have developed early intervention teams but there is limited evidence regarding their cost-effectiveness.

AIMS

To compare the costs and cost-effectiveness of an early intervention service in London with standard care.

METHOD

Individuals in their first episode of psychosis (or those who had previously discontinued treatment) were recruited to the study. Clinical variables and costs were measured at baseline and then at 6- and 18-month follow-up. Information on quality of life and vocational outcomes were combined with costs to assess cost-effectiveness.

RESULTS

A total of 144 people were randomised. Total mean costs were 11,685 pounds sterling in the early intervention group and 14,062 pounds sterling in the standard care group, with the difference not being significant (95% CI -8128 pounds sterling to 3326 pounds sterling). When costs were combined with improved vocational and quality of life outcomes it was shown that early intervention would have a very high likelihood of being cost-effective.

CONCLUSIONS

Early intervention did not increase costs and was highly likely to be cost-effective when compared with standard care.

A review and critique of studies reporting utility values for schizophrenia-related health states

Economic evaluation of health technologies in the form of cost-utility analysis is increasingly advocated. The most common outcome measure in this type of analysis is the QALY. In order to estimate QALYs, appropriate utility values are required. The objective of this review was to identify and critique utility values for schizophrenia-related health states. A critical appraisal was performed on utility values for schizophrenia identified in the systematic literature review that informed the economic analysis of the updated edition of the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) clinical guideline on schizophrenia for England and Wales. Seven studies reporting utility values for schizophrenia were identified. The studies employed a variety of methods for generating utility values. None of the reported sets of utility values for schizophrenia were generated using the EQ-5D, which is a measure widely used in cost-utility analysis and preferred by NICE. Nevertheless, the EQ-5D may be less sensitive in capturing aspects of health-related quality of life in patients with schizophrenia. A condition-specific preference-based instrument may be more appropriate than a generic measure to inform cost-utility analyses of interventions for schizophrenia.

Comparing the performance of the EQ-5D and SF-6D when measuring the benefits of alleviating knee pain

Objective

To assess the practicality, validity and responsiveness of using each of two utility measures (the EQ-5D and SF-6D) to measure the benefits of alleviating knee pain.

Methods

Participants in a randomised controlled trial, which was designed to compare four different interventions for people with self-reported knee pain, were asked to complete the EQ-5D, SF-6D, and Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC) at both pre- and post-intervention. For both utility measures, we assessed their practicality (completion rate), construct validity (ability to discriminate between baseline WOMAC severity levels), and responsiveness (ability to discriminate between three groups: those whose total WOMAC score, i) did not improve, ii) improved by <20%, and iii) improved by ≥20%).

Results

The EQ-5D was completed by 97.7% of the 389 participants, compared to 93.3% for the SF-6D. Both the EQ-5D and SF-6D were able to discriminate between participants with different levels of WOMAC severity (p < 0.001). The mean EQ-5D change was -0.036 for group i), 0.091 for group ii), and 0.127 for group iii), compared to 0.021, 0.023 and 0.053 on the SF-6D. These change scores were significantly different according to the EQ-5D (p < 0.001), but not the SF-6D.

Conclusion

The EQ-5D and SF-6D had largely comparable practicality and construct validity. However, in contrast to the EQ-5D, the SF-6D could not discriminate between those who improved post-intervention, and those who did not. This suggests that it is more appropriate to use the EQ-5D in future cost-effectiveness analyses of interventions which are designed to alleviate knee pain.

Trial registration

Current Controlled Trials ISRCTN93206785