Advancing progress on tobacco control in low-income and middle-income countries through economic analysis.

Background: More than 80% of the world's 1.3 billion tobacco users live in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs), where progress to address tobacco and its harms has been slow. The perception that tobacco control detracts from economic priorities has impeded progress.

Equity implications of tobacco taxation: results from WHO FCTC investment cases.

Background: Across time, geographies and country income levels, smoking prevalence is highest among people with lower incomes. Smoking causes further impoverishment of those on the lower end of the income spectrum through expenditure on tobacco and greater risk of ill health.

Methods: This paper summarises the results of investment case equity analyses for 19 countries, presenting the effects of increased taxation on smoking prevalence, health and expenditures.

Interpreting results, impacts and implications from WHO FCTC tobacco control investment cases in 21 low-income and middle-income countries.

Background: Tobacco control investment cases analyse the health and socioeconomic costs of tobacco use and the benefits that can be achieved from implementing measures outlined in the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC). They are intended to provide policy-makers and other stakeholders with country-level evidence that is relevant, useful and responsive to national priorities and policy context.

Methods: This paper synthesises findings from investment cases conducted in Armenia, Cabo Verde, Cambodia, Chad, Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Eswatini, Georgia, Ghana, Jordan, Laos, Madagascar, Myanmar, Nepal, Samoa, Sierra Leone, Sri Lanka, Suriname, Tunisia and Zambia.

Evolving methodology of national tobacco control investment cases.

Background: This article describes an investment case methodology for tobacco control that was applied in 36 countries between 2017 and 2022.

Methods: The WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) investment cases compared two scenarios: a base case that calculated the tobacco-attributable mortality, morbidity and economic costs with status quo tobacco control, and an intervention scenario that described changes in those same outcomes from fully implementing and enforcing a variety of proven, evidence-based tobacco control policies and interventions. Health consequences included the tobacco-attributable share of mortality and morbidity from 38 diseases.

Barriers to accessibility of medicines for hyperlipidemia in low- and middle-income countries.

Despite the high burden of hyperlipidemia and the effectiveness of treatment, evidence suggests that the accessibility of hyperlipidemia medicines can be low in many low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). The aim of this study was to identify common barriers to the accessibility of medicines for hyperlipidemia in LMICs. A multimethod analysis and multiple data sources were used to assess the accessibility and barriers of medicines for hyperlipidemia in selected LMICs.

Investment case for the prevention and reduction of childhood and adolescent overweight and obesity in Mexico.

Despite efforts to curb the rise in Mexico's child and adolescent overweight and obesity rates, prevalence in Mexico has grown by 120% since 1990 to 43.3% in 2022. This investment case identifies policies that will produce the largest returns for Mexico.

The case for investment in tobacco control: lessons from four countries in the Americas.

Objective: To synthesize learnings from four national tobacco control investment cases conducted in the Americas (Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Suriname) under the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC) 2030 project, to describe results and how national health authorities have used the cases, and to discuss implications for the role of investment cases in advancing tobacco control.

Methods: We draw on findings from four national investment cases that included 1) a cost-of-illness analysis calculating the health and economic burden of tobacco use, 2) a return-on-investment analysis of implementing key tobacco control demand reduction measures, and 3) a subsidiary analysis of one tobacco control topic of national interest (e.g.

Economic impacts of overweight and obesity: current and future estimates for 161 countries.

Introduction: The scope of the challenge of overweight and obesity (OAO) has not been fully realised globally, in part because much of what is known about the economic impacts of OAO come from high-income countries (HICs) and are not readily comparable due to methodological differences. Our objective is to estimate the current and future national economic impacts of OAO globally.

Methods: We estimated economic impacts of OAO for 161 countries using a cost-of-illness approach.

The Cost-Effectiveness of Hyperlipidemia Medication in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: A Review.

Hyperlipidemia is a risk factor for cardiovascular disease - the leading cause of death globally. Increased understanding of the cost-effectiveness of hyperlipidemia treatment in low- and middle-income countries can guide approaches to hyperlipidemia management in resource-limited environments. We conducted a systematic review of the evidence on the cost-effectiveness of hyperlipidemia medication treatment in low- and middle-income countries using studies published between January 2010 and April 2020.

Economic impacts of overweight and obesity: current and future estimates for eight countries.

Background: Obesity is a growing public health challenge worldwide with significant health and economic impacts. However, much of what is known about the economic impacts of obesity comes from high-income countries and studies are not readily comparable due to methodological differences. Our objective is to demonstrate a method for estimating current and future national economic impacts of obesity and apply it across a sample of heterogeneous contexts globally.

The cost-effectiveness of hypertension management in low-income and middle-income countries: a review.

Hypertension in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs) is largely undiagnosed and uncontrolled, representing an untapped opportunity for public health improvement. Implementation of hypertension control strategies in low-resource settings depends in large part on cost considerations. However, evidence on the cost-effectiveness of hypertension interventions in LMICs is varied across geographical, clinical and evaluation contexts.

Mechanisms of decision-making in preoperative assessment for older adult prostate cancer patients-A qualitative study.

Background And Objective: Little research exists which investigates the contextual factors and hidden influences that inform surgeons and surgical teams decision-making in preoperative assessment when deciding whether to or not to operate on older adult prostate cancer patients living with aging-associated functional declines and illnesses. The aim of this study is to identify and examine the underlying mechanisms that uniquely shape preoperative surgical decision-making strategies concerning older adult prostate cancer patients.

Methods: Qualitative methodologies were used that paired ethnographic field observations with semistructured interviews for data collection.

Association Between Physician Teamwork and Health System Outcomes After Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting.

Background: Patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) must often see multiple providers dispersed across many care locations. To test whether teamwork (assessed with the bipartite clustering coefficient) among these physicians is a determinant of surgical outcomes, we examined national Medicare data from patients undergoing CABG.

Methods And Results: Among Medicare beneficiaries who underwent CABG between 2008 and 2011, we mapped relationships between all physicians who treated them during their surgical episodes, including both surgeons and nonsurgeons.

Differences between physician social networks for cardiac surgery serving communities with high versus low proportions of black residents.

Background: Compared with white patients, black patients are more likely to undergo cardiac surgery at low-quality hospitals, even when they live closer to high-quality ones. Opportunities for organizational interventions to alleviate this problem remain elusive.

Objectives: To explore physician isolation in communities with high proportions of black residents as a factor contributing to racial disparities in access to high-quality hospitals for cardiac surgery.