This technology review looked at the effectiveness of crowns on root treated teeth. 3 systematic reviews and 4 non-randomised studies were included. They found that the short term survival with crowns or direct fillings is comparable but long term root canal treated teeth may have better survival.
[read the full story...]Art therapy for common mental health disorders
Chris Sampson reports on a new HTA systematic review and economic evaluation of art therapy for non-psychotic mental health disorders like depression, anxiety and phobias.
[read the full story...]Away from crime and into treatment: diversion and aftercare for drug-using offenders
Can we steer drug-using offenders away from crime and into treatment? Chris Sampson explores a study of the cost-effectiveness of diversion and aftercare programmes for offenders using class A drugs.
[read the full story...]Can telecare be cost effective and improve quality of life?
Clarissa Giebel tackles a randomised controlled trial (RCT) of telecare assistive technology and examines the findings on cost effectiveness and quality of life.
[read the full story...]Searching for the cost of bipolar disorder
Bipolar disorder is associated with high economic costs…or is it? Chris Sampson reports on a new systematic review, which highlights limitations in our understanding.
[read the full story...]Do perinatal mental health problems cost the UK £8 billion per year?
A recent report estimated the societal cost of perinatal mental health problems to be £8 billion, but should we believe it? Chris Sampson advises caution.
[read the full story...]Mental health support for older adults needs to improve
Dave Steele summarises an NIHR funded mixed methods study that concludes we don’t know much about how we should support older adults with mental health problems, except to say that we should be doing better.
[read the full story...]Are treatments for bipolar disorder cost-effective?
Chris Sampson reports on a recent systematic review and critical appraisal of economic evaluations in bipolar disorder. He finds that there’s a pressing need for new studies, especially discrete event simulations.
[read the full story...]Cytisine and varenicline for smoking cessation
Andrew Jones and Chris Sampson report on a systematic review and economic evaluation of cytisine and varenicline for smoking cessation, which finds that both drugs are clinically effective compared with placebo.
[read the full story...]Paucity of high-quality evaluations of the relative effectiveness, cost-effectiveness and safety of dental auxiliaries
This new Cochrane review looks at studies assessing the effectiveness, costs and cost effectiveness of dental auxiliaries in providing care traditionally provided by dentists. Only 5 studies, the majority conducted more than 20 years ago could be included so no firm conclusions can be made.
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