A cost-effectiveness analysis of typhoid fever vaccines in US military personnel.

Typhoid fever has been a problem for military personnel throughout history. A cost-effectiveness analysis of typhoid fever vaccines from the perspective of the US military was performed. Currently 3 vaccine preparations are available in the US: an oral live Type 21A whole cell vaccine; a single-dose parenteral, cell subunit vaccine; and a 2-dose parenteral heat-phenol killed, whole cell vaccine. This analysis assumed all vaccinees were US military personnel. Two pharmacoeconomic models were developed, one for personnel who have not yet been deployed, and the other for personnel who are deployed to an area endemic for typhoid fever. Drug acquisition, administration, adverse effect and lost work costs, as well as the costs associated with typhoid fever, were included in this analysis. Unique military issues, typhoid fever attack rates, vaccine efficacy, and compliance with each vaccine's dosage regimen were included in this analysis. A sensitivity analysis was performed to test the robustness of the models. Typhoid fever immunisation is not cost-effective for US military personnel unless they are considered imminently deployable or are deployed. The most cost-effective vaccine for US military personnel is the single-dose, cell subunit parenteral vaccine.

Complications of intravenous therapy: a randomized prospective study--Vialon vs. Teflon.

For the past two decades, the vast majority of vascular-access devices used in I.V. catheterization have been made of Teflon material. More recent developments in material science have produced the Vialon biomaterial currently used in the Insyte I.V. catheter. This prospective, randomized study compared the length of venous dwell time and rate of I.V.-related complications of Teflon peripheral I.V. catheters and Vialon peripheral I.V. catheters. The study population included only the most difficult peripheral I.V. access patients. Conditions of insertion, monitoring, and care were carefully controlled by the investigators. An alternate assignment scheme was used for randomization of eligible patients. Of 247 catheters evaluated over a six-week period in a 550-bed community tertiary care hospital, 191 were evaluable; of these, equivalent numbers were made of Vialon and Teflon. This investigation found that the incidence of phlebitis in the group receiving Vialon I.V. catheters was 36 percent lower than that of the group receiving Teflon I.V. catheters.