The use of efficiency linear programs for sensitivity analysis in medical decision making.

Sensitivity analysis in most medical problems is a complex process involving repeated calculations that can be computationally cumbersome, and its results are only approximate. The authors present a linear program-based approach that reveals the optimum strategies in a decision problem when event probabilities are not known exactly but their value ranges are available. Its application in a clinical decision-making situation is demonstrated. The approach promises to provide a flexible, precise, and computationally efficient technique for sensitivity analysis in medical decision making.