Med Tech-related technology assessments and clinical guidelines from NICE in March 2024

Health Technology Evaluations (HTE) are the new type of NICE guidance that uses the Early Value Assessment (EVA) approach to provide rapid conditional recommendations on promising health technologies that have the potential to address unmet national needs. NICE evaluates the available evidence to determine if earlier patient and system access in the NHS is appropriate while further evidence is generated.

In March 2024, NICE published the following two new HTEs:

• Digital technologies for managing non-specific low back pain;
• Digital health technologies to help manage symptoms of psychosis and prevent relapse in adults and young people.

NICE recommended the following five digital technologies to be used in the NHS while more evidence is generated to manage non-specific low back pain in people aged 16 and over:

• getUBetter (getUBetter);
• Hinge Health Digital MSK Clinic (Hinge Health);
• Kaia App (Kaia Health);
• Pathway through pain (Wellmind Health);
• selfBACK (SelfBack Consortium).

Other five evaluated technologies can be used only in research: Ascenti Reach (Ascenti), Digital Therapist (Sword Health), Flok Health (Flok Health), Phio Engage (EQL), Joint Academy (Arthro Therapeutics).

NICE assessed three digital technologies for the management of psychosis and prevent relapse: AVATAR Therapy (by Avatar Therapy), CareLoop (by CareLoop Health), and SlowMo (by King's College London) and made different recommendations depending on the patient's age:

• For adults, all three technologies can be used in the NHS while more evidence is generated. These technologies should be delivered or supported by a mental health professional trained in the technology. They can only be used once they have appropriate regulatory approval and meet standards within NHS England's Digital Technology Assessment Criteria (DTAC);
• For young people, the technologies can only be used in research. Access to the technologies should be through company, research, or non-core NHS funding, and clinical and financial risks should be appropriately managed.

In March 2024, NICE updated HTE on Digital technologies for delivering multidisciplinary weight-management service, implementing new recommendations for digital weight-management technologies when they are not used to prescribe and monitor weight-management medicine.

NICE recommended the following seven technologies for use in the NHS while more evidence is generated to prescribe and monitor weight-management medicine and deliver multidisciplinary weight-management services for overweight and obesity in adults:

• CheqUp (CheqUp Health);
• Gro Health W8Buddy (DDM Health);
• Juniper (Juniper Technologies UK);
• Liva (Liva Health);
• Oviva (Oviva);
• Roczen (Reset Health);
• Second Nature (Second Nature).

NICE recommended the following nine digital technologies to be used in the NHS while more evidence is generated to deliver multidisciplinary weight-management services for managing overweight and obesity in adults when they are not used to prescribe and monitor weight-management medicine:

• CheqUp (CheqUp Health);
• Counterweight (Counterweight);
• Gro Health W8Buddy (DDM Health);
• Juniper (Juniper Technologies UK);
• Liva (Liva Health);
• Oviva (Oviva);
• Roczen (Reset Health);
• Second Nature (Second Nature);
• Weight Loss Clinic (Virtual Health Partners).

The following technologies can only be used in research; access to them should be through company, research, or non-core NHS funding, and clinical and financial risks should be appropriately managed: Gloji (Thrive Tribe), Habitual (Habitual Health), and Wellbeing way (Xyla Health and Wellbeing).

NICE also updated HTE on the ProKnow cloud-based system for radiotherapy data storage, communication, and management. The evidence generation plan was published, which gives further information on the prioritized evidence gaps and outcomes, ongoing studies, and potential real-world data sources.

In March 2024, NICE published three new clinical guidelines:

• Identifying and managing the familial and genetic risk of ovarian cancer - makes recommendations for the organization of services, assessing the risk of having a pathogenic variant, criteria for genetic counseling and testing (including panels), assessing the risk of developing ovarian cancer, and risk-reducing surgery (types of risk-reducing surgery and timing depending to the person's specific pathogenic variant);
• Meningitis (bacterial) and meningococcal disease: recognition, diagnosis and management;
• Vitamin B12 deficiency in over 16s: diagnosis and management.

Furthermore, four clinical guidelines were updated:

• Only pharmacology-related changes were made in guidelines for managing COVID-19 and diagnosis and management of lung cancer;
• Neonatal infection: antibiotics for prevention and treatment – new recommendations were made for newborn babies with suspected or confirmed bacterial meningitis;
• Suspected sepsis: recognition, diagnosis, and early management – recommendations on lumbar puncture are now referred to new NICE guidelines on bacterial meningitis and meningococcal disease.

See the full details here.

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