Health Technology Assessment for Children, Adolescents and Young Adults with Chronic Health Conditions
A special issue of Healthcare (ISSN 2227-9032). This special issue belongs to the section "Clinical Care".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 October 2026
Special Issue Editors
Interests: pediatrics; adolescent medicine; clinical pharmacology; health technology assessment (HTA); mental health; neurodiversity; disabilities
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Interests: pediatrics; adolescent medicine; clinical pharmacology; microbiome; stress
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Interests: systematic reviews; meta-analysis; indirect comparisons; health policy; rare diseases; health technology assessment (HTA)
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Health Technology Assessment (HTA) presents unique challenges, and these are dramatically intensified in the case of children and youth living with chronic, complex, or rare health conditions. Clinical and policy decision-making requires robust and reliable data, yet quality data generation is often hindered by small and heterogenous patient populations and the limited feasibility of conducting long-term, adequately powered, clinical trials.
Systematic reviews and network meta-analyses can provide a framework for comparing multiple interventions. Simultaneously, real-world evidence emerges as a key source for understanding the long-term effectiveness and safety of therapies outside the rigid framework of clinical trials. Collectively, these diverse forms of evidence have become an integral part of the regulatory landscape, informing both marketing authorization decisions by regulatory authorities and HTA processes undertaken by reimbursement and policy-making organizations.
In this Special Issue, we welcome original research articles, methodological articles, systematic reviews, and meta-analyses highlighting innovative outcomes of HTA, as well as challenges and opportunities in HTA and authorization processes. By bringing together diverse perspectives and cutting-edge research, our aim is to provide critical insights and advance the dialogue on improving equitable access to safe and effective medicines and medical devices for children, adolescents, and young adults affected by chronic and rare diseases.
Dr. Flora Bacopoulou
Dr. Charikleia Stefanaki
Dr. Chara Kani
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Healthcare is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- health technology assessment
- HTA
- medicines
- medical devices
- children
- adolescents
- young adults
- chronic diseases
- rare diseases
- orphan drugs
Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue
- Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
- Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
- Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
- External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
- Reprint: MDPI Books provides the opportunity to republish successful Special Issues in book format, both online and in print.
Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.


