Economic evaluations of physical rehabilitation interventions in older adults with hip and/or knee osteoarthritis: a systematic review

Abstract

Purpose

The primary aim of this systematic review was to assess the current evidence on the economic evaluations of physical rehabilitation interventions in older adults with hip and/or knee osteoarthritis (OA).

Material and methods

PubMed, Scopus, Embase, Web of Science, CENTRAL, PEDro, and Econlit were searched from January 1, 1995, through April 14, 2019. This study was conducted in accordance with the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) guideline statement. Methodological quality assessment was performed using the Drummond's checklist.

Results

Of 1341 identified tips, 20 studies met the eligibility criteria. Cost-effectiveness analysis (60%) and cost-utility analysis (20%) were the main approaches adopted. Except two studies were based on an observational study, other studies were based on randomized controlled trials. An assessment of these studies demonstrated that physical rehabilitation interventions compared to usual care or surgical procedures result in cost saving and improving the quality of life.

Conclusions

Physical rehabilitation interventions were cost-effectiveness and should be considered by health policy-makers and insurers for the management of patients with knee and hip OA. Furthermore, future studies will need to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of other physical rehabilitation interventions such as physiotherapy and orthotic approaches for definitive conclusions.

Registration code

CRD42019123478

Keywords:

• Osteoarthritis
• rehabilitation
• economic evaluation
• systematic review

Acknowledgement

This research was supported by grant No 33780 from Health Management and Economics Research Center affiliated to Iran University of Medical Sciences. Ethical approval also granted by the Research Ethics Committee of the Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran (IR.IUMS.REC.1397.612). S.SH. designed and initiated the study and developed the search strategy. S.SH., J.A. and A.R. wrote the initial draft and all authors were involved in revising it and approved final version. S.SH. performed all data synthesis and takes responsibility for the accuracy of findings.

Disclosure statement

The authors declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Additional information

Funding

This research was supported Health Management and Economics Research Center affiliated to Iran University of Medical Sciences.