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An Economic Evaluation of the Introduction of Vaccination Against Hepatitis a in a Peacekeeping Operation: The Case of the United Nations Protection Force in Yugoslavia

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 March 2009

Tom Jefferson
Affiliation:
Medical Directorate, British Army of the Rhine
Vittorio Demicheli
Affiliation:
University of Pavia
David Wright
Affiliation:
Royal Army Medical College, London

Abstract

The costs and benefits of vaccinating troops on United Nations tours in Yugoslavia against hepatitis A were compared. The marginal cost of one case of hepatitis A avoided by vaccination was calculated and compared with the marginal cost of achieving the same outcome by passive immunization. The cost-benefit ratio (medium estimate) for troops at low risk of contracting hepatitis A was 0.01 and for those at high risk was 0.03.

Vaccinating troops against hepatitis A for a single deployment appears to be an inefficient procedure, especially in troops at low risk. However, in professional troops from countries of low hepatitis A endemicity who are likely to be involved in several operational deployments, vaccination becomes more efficient the more times the same troops are deployed.

Type
General Essays
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1994

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References

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