Abstract
Objectives
This study presents a cost-effectiveness analysis of salt reduction policies to lower coronary heart disease in Syria.
Methods
Costs and benefits of a health promotion campaign about salt reduction (HP); labeling of salt content on packaged foods (L); reformulation of salt content within packaged foods (R); and combinations of the three were estimated over a 10-year time frame. Policies were deemed cost-effective if their cost-effectiveness ratios were below the region’s established threshold of $38,997 purchasing power parity (PPP). Sensitivity analysis was conducted to account for the uncertainty in the reduction of salt intake.
Results
HP, L, and R + HP + L were cost-saving using the best estimates. The remaining policies were cost-effective (CERs: R = $5,453 PPP/LYG; R + HP = $2,201 PPP/LYG; R + L = $2,125 PPP/LYG). R + HP + L provided the largest benefit with net savings using the best and maximum estimates, while R + L was cost-effective with the lowest marginal cost using the minimum estimates.
Conclusions
This study demonstrated that all policies were cost-saving or cost effective, with the combination of reformulation plus labeling and a comprehensive policy involving all three approaches being the most promising salt reduction strategies to reduce CHD mortality in Syria.
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Acknowledgments
This work was funded by the EU FP7 grants for the MedCHAMPS project (MEDiterranean studies of Cardiovascular disease and Hyperglycaemia: Analytical Modelling of Population Socio-economic transitions) and the RESCAP-MED project (RESearch CApacity for Public health in the MEDiterranean).
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This article is part of the supplement "The rising burden of noncommunicable diseases in four Mediterranean countries and potential solutions".
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Wilcox, M.L., Mason, H., Fouad, F.M. et al. Cost-effectiveness analysis of salt reduction policies to reduce coronary heart disease in Syria, 2010–2020. Int J Public Health 60 (Suppl 1), 23–30 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00038-014-0577-3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00038-014-0577-3