Return on investment of tobacco control measures: a systematic review protocol.

Objective: The objective of this systematic review will be to estimate the return on investment (ROI) and social return on investment (SROI) on tobacco control measures.

Introduction: Tobacco consumption has been proven to be associated with a huge epidemiological, humanistic, and economic burden. National and international organizations are making concerted efforts to control tobacco use. However, currently, there are no conclusive estimates of the ROI and SROI of such programs and policies.

Inclusion criteria: This review will include all studies that evaluate the ROI or SROI on tobacco control programs and policies on tobacco users and probable tobacco users globally.

Methods: This review will follow the JBI methodology for systematic reviews of economic evidence. Databases to be searched will include Embase (Ovid), MEDLINE (PubMed), Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), Health Economic Evaluation Database (HEED), National Health Service Economic Evaluation Database (NHS EED), CEA Registry, LILACS, Science Direct, Web of Science, EconLit, and Google Advanced Search. Gray literature will also be searched for in non-academic databases, including the websites of various civil societies and non-governmental organizations involved in tobacco control. Two independent reviewers will screen titles/abstracts, and later full-text studies. Critical appraisal will be conducted using the JBI checklist for economic evaluations and the SROI Quality Framework. Data will be extracted and synthesized using JBI data extraction forms and synthesis tools. The MPOWER framework will be considered for data synthesis across all selected studies using narrative synthesis, tables, and figures.

Systematic review registration number: PROSPERO CRD42023391591.