Choosing metrics in public health assessments: attributing credit for the recent large coronary heart disease mortality decline in the US population
- 1Department of Public Health and Primary Care, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
- 2The Institute of Health and Society, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK
- 3The Division of Public Health, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK
Background
Most explanations of falls in coronary heart disease (CHD) mortality limit themselves to event based metrics (such as fewer deaths). However, time based metrics (such as life-years gained (LYG)) promise to capture more of the social value attached to the deaths averted. We have assessed the sensitivity of conclusions about the relative contributions of treatments and risk factor changes to the choice of metric.
Methods
Using a validated CHD mortality model (IMPACT), we integrated data on the number …
