Health technology assessment

In September 2020, a completed mini-method assessment for the MitraClip for percutaneous mitral valve repair was issued within the New Methods framework. The Oslo University Hospital carried out the evaluation. The method was recommended for routine use in hospitals.

On September 03, 2020, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) issued medical technologies guidance on Axonics sacral neuromodulation (SNM) system for treating refractory overactive bladder. NICE recommended Axonics SNM to be adopted in the NHS and considered as an alternative when another treatment is not effective.

The first issue of HTA Alerts included 186 reports from European organizations only. This issue included reports, published or initiated from the 1st of August 2020, and ongoing reports. The most common technological fields were cardiovascular, gastroenterology, in-vitro diagnostics, men's health, neuromodulation, and orthopedics. Contact us if you want to receive a sample alert and to learn more about the service.

At the end of July 2020, the network of European HTA agencies, EUnetHTA, announced the final plan of the project OTCA27 “Comparative effectiveness of surgical techniques and devices for the treatment of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH).”

On behalf of the Federal Joint Committee (G-BA), the Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care (IQWiG) investigated to what extent adults with symptomatic knee cartilage defect (but without advanced arthrosis) could benefit from autologous chondrocyte implantation (ACI) of different types: periosteal-covered (ACI-P), collagen-covered (ACI-C) or matrix-associated (M-ACI).

In July 2020, the Austrian Institute for Health Technology Assessment (AIHTA) issued an updated report on the PET/PET-CT evidence for need-based planning in Austria.

In July 2020, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) published two new interventional procedure guidance (for artificial iris insertion for acquired aniridia and for congenital aniridia), and two Medtech innovation briefings (for Prontosan for acute and chronic wounds, and CFHealthHub for managing cystic fibrosis during the COVID-19 pandemic).

In July 2020, the network of European HTA agencies, EUnetHTA, announced a final project plan of the project OTCA25 “Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy (SBRT) for lung, prostate, and liver cancer.”

The HTA body of the Tuscany Regional Healthcare issues two types of documents: HTA forms and motivational forms. With a regional decree 12735 of August 13, 2020, Tuscany Regional Healthcare has published assessments of eleven medical devices of various therapeutic areas, including peripheral nerve stimulator, catheter for renal denervation, EKOS technology and others.

In July 2020, the Austrian Institute for Health Technology Assessment (AIHTA) published updated evaluations of medical procedures previously assessed. Technologies that were revised are leadless pacemaker for right ventricle pacing and extracorporeal cytokine hemadsorption therapy in patients with sepsis or SIRS.

In the middle of 2020, the Galician Scientific and Technical Advice Unit (Unidad de Asesoramiento Científico-técnico, Avalia-T) released a health technology assessment on clinical Effectiveness of newborn screening for inborn errors of metabolism by MS/MS that aimed to update the data collected in the pilot study. It is recommended to define health indicators, optimum and acceptable levels of some process indicators.

The Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care (IQWiG) investigated the extent to which evidence is available for the benefit and harm of non-invasive computed tomography angiography (CTA) and stress diagnostics using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in people with suspected coronary heart disease (CAD) using evidence mapping.