Current principles and application of pharmacoeconomics.

Anti-infective drugs account for between 3 and 25% of all prescriptions, between 6 and 21% of the total market value of drugs in a single country, and up to 50% of the drug budget in hospitals. Not surprisingly, in an era when cost-containment policies are at the top of the agenda, issues related to pharmaco-economics of antibacterial treatment have assumed an important part in these policies. However, there are still some misunderstandings regarding the precise terminology and difference in methodology of pharmacoeconomics. The aim of this paper is to explain the genealogy of pharmacoeconomics and various methods currently used in the application of this young discipline to anti-infective treatment.