Trajectory of health-related quality of life during and after hospitalisation due to worsening of heart failure.

Purpose: This study aimed to examine the trajectory in health-related quality of life (HRQoL) during and after hospitalisation for worsening of heart failure (HF) in Malaysia.

Methods: 200 patients with heart failure and reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF) admitted into two hospitals in Malaysia due to worsening of HF were surveyed using the EQ-5D-5 L questionnaire. The primary outcomes were utility values at admission, discharge and 1-month post-discharge (1MPD).

Validity and measurement equivalence of EQ-5D-5L questionnaire among heart failure patients in Malaysia: a cohort study.

Aim: This study aimed to examine the validity of EQ-5D-5L among HFrEF patients in Malaysia, and to explore the measurement equivalence of three main language versions.

Methods: We surveyed HFrEF patients from two hospitals in Malaysia, using Malay, English or Chinese versions of EQ-5D-5L. EQ-5D-5L dimensional scores were converted to utility scores using the Malaysian value set.

Economic Evaluations of Guideline-Directed Medical Therapies for Heart Failure With Reduced Ejection Fraction: A Systematic Review.

Objectives: Decision-analytic models (DAMs) with varying structures and assumptions have been applied in economic evaluations (EEs) to assist decision making for heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF) therapeutics. This systematic review aimed to summarize and critically appraise the EEs of guideline-directed medical therapies (GDMTs) for HFrEF.

Methods: A systematic search of English articles and gray literature, published from January 2010, was performed on databases including MEDLINE, Embase, Scopus, NHSEED, health technology assessment, Cochrane Library, etc.

Stakeholders' Views on Patient Access Schemes in Malaysia.

Objectives: The healthcare system aspires to ensure improved access to treatment while working within the existing financial constraints and increasing demands. Patient access schemes (PASs) are initiated to improve access. This study seeks the stakeholders' views on the PAS in the public healthcare sector in Malaysia.

Stakeholder views of managed entry agreements: A literature review of national studies.

Access to highly expensive and innovative medicine is a challenge. Managed entry agreements/ arrangements (MEAs) consist of various forms of confidential agreements between pharmaceutical manufacturers and payers (hospitals, social insurance), which are mainly negotiated when there is uncertainty of the actual clinical benefit of the medicines, but high public expenditures are required. Continued and expanding use of these schemes requires a greater understanding of payer perceptions, experience, and orientation towards their current and future use.

Using telemedicine to support care for people with type 2 diabetes mellitus: a qualitative analysis of patients' perspectives.

Objective: Telemedicine has been promoted as an economical and effective way to enhance patient care, but its acceptance among patients in low-income and middle-income countries is poorly understood. This study is aimed to explore the experiences and perspectives of people with type 2 diabetes mellitus that used telemedicine to manage their condition.

Design: In-depth and focus group interviews were conducted with participants who have engaged in telemedicine.

Telemonitoring and Team-Based Management of Glycemic Control on People with Type 2 Diabetes: a Cluster-Randomized Controlled Trial.

Background: Connected devices that allow people with diabetes to monitor their blood glucose levels remotely with data visualization have been shown to improve self-care behavior in diabetes management. However, their effectiveness and usability for a low-middle-income, racially diverse population are unknown.

Objective: This study aims to evaluate the effects of remote telemonitoring with team-based management on people with uncontrolled type 2 diabetes.

Economic Evaluation of Combination Therapy Versus Monotherapy for Treatment of Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia in Hong Kong.

Lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) suggestive of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) is a common condition affecting men. Studies have shown that the prevalence of LUTS/BPH increases with age, which will cause considerable economic burden to the healthcare system and society. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the long term cost effectiveness of dutasteride and tamsulosin therapy compared to tamsulosin alone in men with BPH in Hong Kong.

Intervention for Diabetes with Education, Advancement and Support (IDEAS) study: protocol for a cluster randomised controlled trial.

Background: The high market penetration of mobile phones has triggered an opportunity to combine mobile technology with health care to overcome challenges in today's health care setting. Although Malaysia has a high Internet and mobile penetration rate, evaluations of the efficacy of incorporating this technology in diabetes care is not common. We report the development of a telemonitoring coaching system, using the United Kingdom (UK) Medical Research Council (MRC) framework, for patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus.

Cost-effectiveness analysis of infant universal routine pneumococcal vaccination in Malaysia and Hong Kong.

Pneumococcal disease causes large morbidity, mortality and health care utilization and medical and non-medical costs, which can all be reduced by effective infant universal routine immunization programs with pneumococcal conjugate vaccines (PCV). We evaluated the clinical and economic benefits of such programs with either 10- or 13-valent PCVs in Malaysia and Hong Kong by using an age-stratified Markov cohort model with many country-specific inputs. The incremental cost per quality-adjusted life year (QALY) was calculated to compare PCV10 or PCV13 against no vaccination and PCV13 against PCV10 over a 10-year birth cohort's vaccination.

Cost analysis of risperidone long-acting injection in the treatment of schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorders in Hong Kong: an approach using generalised estimating equations.

Schizophrenia is one of the most expensive psychiatric illnesses. This study compared retrospectively health-care resources consumed 12 months before and 24 months after risperidone long-acting injection (RLAI) treatment in Hong Kong. A mirror-image analysis was conducted using data (N=191) from three public hospitals in Hong Kong from 2003 to 2007.