Evidence map›Paper›PMID 35511888›Full record

ArticlePloS one2022

Cost-effectiveness of internet-supported cognitive behavioral therapy for university students with anxiety symptoms: A Markov-model analysis.

Joyce H S You, Scotty W C Luk, Dilys Y W Chow, Xinchan Jiang, Arthur D P Mak, Winnie W S Mak

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in PloS one, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 10 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
10citing papers in PubMed
2.6field-weighted citation impact, top 11% of its field
1 · What the graph read from 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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

10 citing papers in PubMed, 17 citations in OpenAlex.

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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.

Joyce H S YouSchool of Pharmacy, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China.ORCID 0000-0002-5763-7403
Scotty W C LukUniversity Health Service, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China.
Dilys Y W ChowSchool of Pharmacy, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China.
Xinchan JiangSchool of Pharmacy, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China.
Arthur D P MakDepartment of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China.
Winnie W S MakDepartment of Psychology, Faculty of Social Science, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China.
Chinese University of Hong Kong · HK

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

BACKGROUND AND

aimHigh prevalence of anxiety symptoms has been reported globally in the university students. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is the recognized treatment for anxiety and is traditionally conducted face-to-face (f-CBT). The efficacy of internet-based CBT (i-CBT) for anxiety has been extensively studied, yet evidence on its cost-effectiveness is scarce. We aimed to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of guided low-intensity i-CBT for university students with mild anxiety symptoms from the societal perspective of Hong Kong.

methodsA 5-year Markov model was designed to compare outcomes of guided i-CBT and f-CBT in a hypothetical cohort of university students with mild anxiety symptoms. Model inputs of cost and healthcare resources associated with anxiety were retrospectively collected from a cohort of university students with anxiety symptoms. Clinical and utility model inputs were retrieved from published literature. Model outcome measures were anxiety-related total cost (including direct medical and indirect costs) and quality-adjusted life-year (QALY). Sensitivity analyses were performed to examine the robustness of base-case results.

resultsIn base-case analysis, i-CBT gained higher QALYs (2.9956 versus 2.9917) at lower total cost (US$6,101 versus US$6,246) than f-CBT. In one-way sensitivity analysis, the QALY gained by i-CBT was sensitive to the relative patient acceptance and adherence to CBT. In probabilistic sensitivity analysis, i-CBT was cost-effective in 90.9% of the time at the willingness-to-pay threshold of 138,210 per QALY (3× GDP per capita in Hong Kong). The probability of i-CBT to be cost-effective was 99.9% at a willingness-to-pay threshold of zero.

conclusionsGuided i-CBT appears to be cost-saving and effective for management of university students with mild symptoms of anxiety from the societal perspective of Hong Kong. The cost-effectiveness of i-CBT is highly subject to the individual acceptance and adherence of CBT delivered by the internet platform.

Indexed as

Cognitive Behavioral TherapyAnxietyCost-Benefit AnalysisHumansInternetQuality-Adjusted Life YearsRetrospective StudiesStudentsUniversities

Identifiers

PMID35511888
PMCPMC9070891
OpenAlexW4229012383

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

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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.