How do we evaluate the economics of health care?

Economic evaluation has become an integral component of health service research in recent years and will no doubt become more influential. As resources are reduced in health services, more questions are likely to be asked on the costs and benefits of new treatments. Questions are also likely to be aimed at treatments that are currently provided. Economics related to health care is complex and numerous methods of economic evaluation exist. Full economic evaluation involves the assessment of both costs and outcomes and is ideal for comparing the efficiency of treatments. Partial evaluations can also provide useful information on the contribution of component costs to treatment costs as a whole. The aim of this review is to assess the various methods available to evaluate the economics of health care and to place in context how these methods may be used within dentistry.