SynthesisPloS one2016
Economic Analysis of Children's Surgical Care in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: A Systematic Review and Analysis.
Synthesis in PloS one, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 55 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
55 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- The cost of chemotherapy administration: a systematic review and meta-analysis.The European journal of health economics : HEPAC : health economics in prevention and care · 2021Pooled it
- Cost-effectiveness of neonatal surgery for congenital anomalies in low-income and middle-income countries: a systematic review protocol.BMJ paediatrics open · 2020Pooled it
- Disability Weights for Pediatric Surgical Procedures: A Systematic Review and Analysis.World journal of surgery · 2018Pooled it
- Article
- Development of paediatric surgical care in Sierra Leone: a repeated nationwide cross-sectional study from 2012 to 2023.BMJ public health · 2026Article
- Surgery and the first 8000 days of life: a review.International health · 2025Review
- Establishing a High-Quality Pediatric Cardiac Surgery Program in Post-Conflict Regions: A Model for Limited Resource Countries.Pediatric cardiology · 2025Article
- GAPS Phase III: incorporation of capacity based weighting in the global assessment for pediatric surgery.Pediatric surgery international · 2024Article
- A plea for urgent action: Addressing the critical shortage of cardiothoracic surgical workforce in the COSECSA region.World journal of surgery · 2024Article
- Cost-effectiveness of a pediatric operating room installation in Sub-Saharan Africa.PLOS global public health · 2024Article
- Modeling the global impact of reducing out-of-pocket costs for children's surgical care.PLOS global public health · 2024Article
- Assessment of anesthesia capacity for children in Somaliland.PLOS global public health · 2024Article
- Cost effectiveness and return on investment analysis for surgical care in a conflict-affected region of Sudan.PLOS global public health · 2024Article
- Evidence Mapping and Quality Analysis of Systematic Reviews on Various Aspects Related to Cleft Lip and Palate.Journal of clinical medicine · 2023Review
- Article
- Assessing the inclusion of children's surgical care in National Surgical, Obstetric and Anaesthesia Plans: a policy content analysis.BMJ open · 2023Article
- Delays in care for hydrocephalus and spina bifida at a tertiary hospital in Somaliland.World journal of pediatric surgery · 2023Article
- Building back better children's surgical services toward universal health coverage: Perspectives from Bangladesh and Zimbabwe.Frontiers in public health · 2023Article
- Analyzing complications and implementing solutions in a pediatric inguinal hernia cooperation program in Equatorial Guinea: a prospective cohort study.Annals of pediatric surgery · 2023Article
- Are multidisciplinary consultation meetings for prenatal diagnosis achievable in a low-income country? A descriptive cross-sectional survey in Benin.World journal of pediatric surgery · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
7 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundUnderstanding the economic value of health interventions is essential for policy makers to make informed resource allocation decisions. The objective of this systematic review was to summarize available information on the economic impact of children's surgical care in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs).
methodsWe searched MEDLINE (Pubmed), Embase, and Web of Science for relevant articles published between Jan. 1996 and Jan. 2015. We summarized reported cost information for individual interventions by country, including all costs, disability weights, health outcome measurements (most commonly disability-adjusted life years [DALYs] averted) and cost-effectiveness ratios (CERs). We calculated median CER as well as societal economic benefits (using a human capital approach) by procedure group across all studies. The methodological quality of each article was assessed using the Drummond checklist and the overall quality of evidence was summarized using a scale adapted from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.
findingsWe identified 86 articles that met inclusion criteria, spanning 36 groups of surgical interventions. The procedure group with the lowest median CER was inguinal hernia repair ($15/DALY). The procedure group with the highest median societal economic benefit was neurosurgical procedures ($58,977). We found a wide range of study quality, with only 35% of studies having a Drummond score ≥ 7.
interpretationOur findings show that many areas of children's surgical care are extremely cost-effective in LMICs, provide substantial societal benefits, and are an appropriate target for enhanced investment. Several areas, including inguinal hernia repair, trichiasis surgery, cleft lip and palate repair, circumcision, congenital heart surgery and orthopedic procedures, should be considered "Essential Pediatric Surgical Procedures" as they offer considerable economic value. However, there are major gaps in existing research quality and methodology which limit our current understanding of the economic value of surgical care.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.