Object-oriented influence diagram for cost–effectiveness analysis of influenza vaccination in the Italian elderly population

Abstract

Influenza infection is a major cause of illness, morbidity and mortality throughout the world, mainly amongst the elderly. Since vaccination has proven to be effective in the reduction of all acute complications, deciding whether to implement a vaccination campaign and which vaccine to prescribe is an important task. The aim of this review is to build a decision model, which allows the decision makers to evaluate the possible results under different scenarios, and to choose the decision associated with the highest expected utility. The analysis is based on Bayesian networks methodology. Vaccination is more effective in the long run and is cost saving compared with the null option. Moreover, the innovative MF59 adjuvanted flu vaccine proves to be cost effective with respect to standard vaccines.

Keywords::

• influence diagrams
• influenza vaccination
• MF59 adjuvanted flu vaccine
• object-oriented Bayesian networks