Dictionary
The Dictionary provides concise definitions of health economics terms, arranged alphabetically for quick reference. Use it to understand unfamiliar terminology or confirm the meaning of a specific term.
B
- Bottom-Up Cost-of-IllnessBottom-Up COI, Prevalence-Based Bottom-Up Costing
- A cost-of-illness study estimating a disease's economic burden by aggregating detailed cost data collected at the individual patient level.
C
- Cross-Sectional DesignPrevalence Study Design, Point-Prevalence Design
- An observational design measuring exposure and outcome simultaneously in a population at a single point in time, rather than over time.
- Cross-Sectional StudyPrevalence Study, Point-in-Time Study
- A study examining a defined population at a single point in time, measuring prevalence without following participants over time.
D
- DFLE CalculationDisability-Free Life Expectancy Calculation, DFLE Estimation
- The process of computing disability-free life expectancy using a life table combining age-specific mortality rates with age-specific disability prevalence.
- Diagnosis CoverageDiagnosis Rate, Detection Coverage
- A measure of the proportion of people with a specific condition who have actually been diagnosed, capturing the gap between prevalence and recognition.
E
- EndemicBaseline Disease Presence, Stable Prevalence Disease
- A disease consistently present within a geographic area at a generally predictable, stable baseline level, unlike an epidemic's sudden increase.
F
- Force of InfectionInfection Hazard, Infection Rate Parameter
- The rate at which susceptible individuals become infected, determined jointly by disease prevalence and the rate and probability of transmission per contact.
H
- Hale CalculationHALE Computation, Health-Adjusted Life Expectancy Calculation
- The process of computing health-adjusted life expectancy, combining mortality data with health state prevalence and severity weights into one summary measure.
I
- IncidenceNew-Case Rate, New-Case Frequency
- The number of new cases of a disease occurring within a defined population over a specified period, unlike prevalence, which counts existing cases.
L
- Lifetime PrevalenceCumulative Prevalence, Ever-Prevalence
- The proportion of a population that has experienced a condition at any point in life up to assessment, unlike point prevalence.
N
- NCD Risk Factor PrevalenceNCD Risk Prevalence, Chronic Risk Factor Rate
- A measure of the proportion of a population exhibiting a specific modifiable risk factor for noncommunicable disease, such as tobacco use.
- Number Needed to ScreenNNS, Screening Number Needed
- The number of individuals who would need screening for a condition to prevent one adverse outcome, based on prevalence and programme effectiveness.
O
- Obesity Prevalence RateObesity Rate, Population Obesity Level
- A measure of the proportion of a population classified as obese based on standardised body mass index criteria.
P
- Pandemic ElasticityPandemic Demand Responsiveness, Crisis Elasticity
- The responsiveness of healthcare demand, supply, or prices to changes in disease prevalence during a pandemic, measured using standard economic elasticity.
- Period PrevalenceInterval Prevalence, Duration Prevalence
- The proportion of a population with a particular condition at any point during a specified period, combining existing and newly developed cases.
- Physical Inactivity RateInactivity Prevalence, Sedentary Rate
- A measure of the proportion of a population not meeting recommended physical activity guidelines, a modifiable chronic disease risk factor.
- Point PrevalenceSnapshot Prevalence, Prevalence at a Single Time
- The proportion of a population found to have a particular condition at a single specific point in time, unlike period prevalence or incidence.
- Population Attributable FractionPAF, Population Aetiologic Fraction
- The proportion of disease cases in an entire population that would not occur if a specific exposure were eliminated, accounting for its prevalence.
- Pre-Test ProbabilityPrior Diagnostic Probability, Baseline Risk of Condition
- The estimated probability that a patient has a condition before a diagnostic test result is known, based on prevalence and clinical presentation.
- PrevalenceExisting-Case Frequency, Case Proportion
- The total proportion of a population with a particular condition at a given time, covering both new and pre-existing cases.
- Prevalence DifferenceAbsolute Prevalence Gap, Prevalence Disparity
- The absolute difference in the prevalence of a condition between two groups, giving a direct measure of disparity in disease burden.
- Prevalence RatioRelative Prevalence, Comparative Prevalence
- A measure comparing the prevalence of a condition between two groups, calculated as the ratio of one group's prevalence to the other's.
S
- Sullivan MethodSullivan Approach, Prevalence-Based Life Expectancy
- A technique for calculating health expectancy measures by combining age-specific mortality rates from a life table with age-specific prevalence rates of disability.
T
- Tobacco Use PrevalenceSmoking Prevalence, Tobacco Prevalence
- A measure of the proportion of a population currently using tobacco products, a leading modifiable chronic disease risk factor.
- Top-Down Cost-of-IllnessPrevalence-Based Cost-of-Illness, Aggregate Cost-of-Illness
- A cost-of-illness study estimating disease-specific cost by apportioning a share of national or aggregate expenditure statistics to a particular condition.
Y
- Years Lived with DisabilityYLD
- A component of the disability-adjusted life year representing healthy years lost to a non-fatal condition, found by multiplying its prevalence by its disability weight.