Abstract
The articles in the special section on HIV/AIDS: Eastern Europe (9 July, p. [159][1]) omitted one important point: Considering the current economic downturn and limited resources available, it is particularly important to optimally use existing funds for HIV prevention and treatment. Economic studies such as cost-effectiveness analyses can inform decisions regarding the best resource allocation between available interventions. Research analyzing the public health and economic impacts of diseases and their interventions has become an essential tool for decision-makers; these results help them choose the most effective epidemic control programs while considering budget constraints. To date, only a few scholarly articles have evaluated the cost-effectiveness of HIV interventions in Russia and Ukraine, in marked comparison to the scores of studies published on HIV in Africa. Scarce scientific information may lead to inappropriate use of limited resources and further hamper efforts to contain the threat of a generalized HIV epidemic. Sound scientific evidence for the cost-effectiveness of debated interventions (such as opioid substitution therapy) could be a strong argument to accelerate adoption of these programs. Studies on scaling up antiretroviral therapy, such as the case of injection drug users in Saint Petersburg, Russia ([ 1 ][2]), show that the interventions that reach injection drug users also prevent a substantial number of infections in the general population. More attention from the research community should be directed toward studies of HIV in Eastern Europe. 1. [↵][3] 1. E. F. Long 2. et al ., AIDS 20, 2207 (2006). [OpenUrl][4][CrossRef][5][PubMed][6][Web of Science][7] [1]: /lookup/doi/10.1126/science.329.5988.159 [2]: #ref-1 [3]: #xref-ref-1-1 View reference 1 in text [4]: {openurl}?query=rft.jtitle%253DAIDS%2B%2528London%252C%2BEngland%2529%26rft.stitle%253DAIDS%26rft.aulast%253DLong%26rft.auinit1%253DE.%2BF.%26rft.volume%253D20%26rft.issue%253D17%26rft.spage%253D2207%26rft.epage%253D2215%26rft.atitle%253DEffectiveness%2Band%2Bcost-effectiveness%2Bof%2Bstrategies%2Bto%2Bexpand%2Bantiretroviral%2Btherapy%2Bin%2BSt.%2BPetersburg%252C%2BRussia.%26rft_id%253Dinfo%253Adoi%252F10.1097%252FQAD.0b013e328010c7d0%26rft_id%253Dinfo%253Apmid%252F17086061%26rft.genre%253Darticle%26rft_val_fmt%253Dinfo%253Aofi%252Ffmt%253Akev%253Amtx%253Ajournal%26ctx_ver%253DZ39.88-2004%26url_ver%253DZ39.88-2004%26url_ctx_fmt%253Dinfo%253Aofi%252Ffmt%253Akev%253Amtx%253Actx [5]: /lookup/external-ref?access_num=10.1097/QAD.0b013e328010c7d0&link_type=DOI [6]: /lookup/external-ref?access_num=17086061&link_type=MED&atom=%2Fsci%2F330%2F6000%2F34.2.atom [7]: /lookup/external-ref?access_num=000242676900010&link_type=ISI
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