Economic evaluations of pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions for delirium: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Background: Delirium, a prevalent cognitive dysfunction in older adults, particularly in hospital and surgical settings, significantly increases patient morbidity, mortality, and healthcare costs. However, economic evaluations of healthcare interventions aimed at its prevention, management, and trea...

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Main Authors: Md Parvez Mosharaf, Khorshed Alam, Jeff Gow, Rashidul Alam Mahumud
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2025-06-01
Series:SSM - Mental Health
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Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666560325000209
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author Md Parvez Mosharaf
Khorshed Alam
Jeff Gow
Rashidul Alam Mahumud
author_facet Md Parvez Mosharaf
Khorshed Alam
Jeff Gow
Rashidul Alam Mahumud
author_sort Md Parvez Mosharaf
collection DOAJ
description Background: Delirium, a prevalent cognitive dysfunction in older adults, particularly in hospital and surgical settings, significantly increases patient morbidity, mortality, and healthcare costs. However, economic evaluations of healthcare interventions aimed at its prevention, management, and treatment are scant. This study synthesized the available economic evaluation evidence on both pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions. Methods: A systematic review was conducted on studies published from January 1, 2000, to December 31, 2023, across multiple databases, including PubMed, MEDLINE, Scopus, and EBSCOhost (CINAHL, PsycINFO, and ECOLIT). We adhered to the PICOS framework for inclusion and exclusion criteria and followed PRISMA guidelines for the analysis. The quality of the studies included was assessed using the CHEERS checklist. The meta-analysis of the cost-effectiveness of multicomponent non-pharmacological intervention was evaluated using incremental net benefits (INB). Results: Sixteen eligible studies met the inclusion criteria including four cost-effectiveness analyses (CEA), two cost-benefit analyses (CBA), three cost-consequence analyses (CCA), and seven cost-saving/minimization analyses. The majority (14/16 studies) evaluated non-pharmacological interventions, while only two studies assessed the cost-effectiveness of drug interventions (i.e. dexmedetomidine). Besides the cost-effective multicomponent interventions, pharmacological intervention was also associated with a cost reduction of a maximum of US$4370 per patient by decreasing the length of ICU stays. The studies predominantly originated from high-income countries. The meta-analysis included four studies and pooled INB of multicomponent non-pharmacological intervention was estimated at US$8014 (95% CI=US$1,060, US$14,969; p-value<0.05) with significant heterogeneity among the studies (I2 = 100%; p-value<0.01). The pooled INB was US$2657 higher for the model-based economic evaluation studies compared to within-trial evaluation. Conclusion: The estimated INB indicated that multicomponent non-pharmacological intervention was a cost-effective strategy to prevent and manage delirium cases which indicates improved patient outcomes and potential cost savings. Future research should focus on low-resource settings and direct comparisons of pharmacological and non-pharmacological approaches to further enhance delirium management practices.
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spelling doaj-art-c69e78d5dfd34a4da9cca84f45ea5a5a2025-08-20T03:21:12ZengElsevierSSM - Mental Health2666-56032025-06-01710040810.1016/j.ssmmh.2025.100408Economic evaluations of pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions for delirium: A systematic review and meta-analysisMd Parvez Mosharaf0Khorshed Alam1Jeff Gow2Rashidul Alam Mahumud3School of Business, Faculty of Business, Education, Law and Arts, and Centre for Health Research, University of Southern Queensland, Toowoomba, QLD, 4350, Australia; Bioinformatics Lab, Department of Statistics, University of Rajshahi, Rajshahi, 6205, Bangladesh; Corresponding author School of Business, Faculty of Business, Education, Law and Arts, and Centre for Health Research, University of Southern Queensland, Toowoomba, QLD, 4350, Australia.School of Business, Faculty of Business, Education, Law and Arts, and Centre for Health Research, University of Southern Queensland, Toowoomba, QLD, 4350, AustraliaSchool of Business, Faculty of Business, Education, Law and Arts, and Centre for Health Research, University of Southern Queensland, Toowoomba, QLD, 4350, Australia; School of Accounting, Economics and Finance, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 4000, South AfricaNHMRC Clinical Trials Centre, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Camperdown, NSW, 2006, AustraliaBackground: Delirium, a prevalent cognitive dysfunction in older adults, particularly in hospital and surgical settings, significantly increases patient morbidity, mortality, and healthcare costs. However, economic evaluations of healthcare interventions aimed at its prevention, management, and treatment are scant. This study synthesized the available economic evaluation evidence on both pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions. Methods: A systematic review was conducted on studies published from January 1, 2000, to December 31, 2023, across multiple databases, including PubMed, MEDLINE, Scopus, and EBSCOhost (CINAHL, PsycINFO, and ECOLIT). We adhered to the PICOS framework for inclusion and exclusion criteria and followed PRISMA guidelines for the analysis. The quality of the studies included was assessed using the CHEERS checklist. The meta-analysis of the cost-effectiveness of multicomponent non-pharmacological intervention was evaluated using incremental net benefits (INB). Results: Sixteen eligible studies met the inclusion criteria including four cost-effectiveness analyses (CEA), two cost-benefit analyses (CBA), three cost-consequence analyses (CCA), and seven cost-saving/minimization analyses. The majority (14/16 studies) evaluated non-pharmacological interventions, while only two studies assessed the cost-effectiveness of drug interventions (i.e. dexmedetomidine). Besides the cost-effective multicomponent interventions, pharmacological intervention was also associated with a cost reduction of a maximum of US$4370 per patient by decreasing the length of ICU stays. The studies predominantly originated from high-income countries. The meta-analysis included four studies and pooled INB of multicomponent non-pharmacological intervention was estimated at US$8014 (95% CI=US$1,060, US$14,969; p-value<0.05) with significant heterogeneity among the studies (I2 = 100%; p-value<0.01). The pooled INB was US$2657 higher for the model-based economic evaluation studies compared to within-trial evaluation. Conclusion: The estimated INB indicated that multicomponent non-pharmacological intervention was a cost-effective strategy to prevent and manage delirium cases which indicates improved patient outcomes and potential cost savings. Future research should focus on low-resource settings and direct comparisons of pharmacological and non-pharmacological approaches to further enhance delirium management practices.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666560325000209DeliriumInterventionsCost-effectiveness analysisIncremental net benefitSystematic review and meta-analysis
spellingShingle Md Parvez Mosharaf
Khorshed Alam
Jeff Gow
Rashidul Alam Mahumud
Economic evaluations of pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions for delirium: A systematic review and meta-analysis
SSM - Mental Health
Delirium
Interventions
Cost-effectiveness analysis
Incremental net benefit
Systematic review and meta-analysis
title Economic evaluations of pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions for delirium: A systematic review and meta-analysis
title_full Economic evaluations of pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions for delirium: A systematic review and meta-analysis
title_fullStr Economic evaluations of pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions for delirium: A systematic review and meta-analysis
title_full_unstemmed Economic evaluations of pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions for delirium: A systematic review and meta-analysis
title_short Economic evaluations of pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions for delirium: A systematic review and meta-analysis
title_sort economic evaluations of pharmacological and non pharmacological interventions for delirium a systematic review and meta analysis
topic Delirium
Interventions
Cost-effectiveness analysis
Incremental net benefit
Systematic review and meta-analysis
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666560325000209
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AT jeffgow economicevaluationsofpharmacologicalandnonpharmacologicalinterventionsfordeliriumasystematicreviewandmetaanalysis
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