Med Tech-related technology assessments from NICE in July 2025

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) develops Interventional Procedures Guidance (IPG) for most novel interventional procedures entering the English market. The program focuses solely on clinical evidence. Recommendations may vary from "for research only" to "for use with standard arrangements for clinical governance, consent, and audit." Recommendations are not binding, although they are followed by providers and commissioners.

In July 2025, NICE published a new IPG on pulsed-field ablation for atrial fibrillation. It concluded that the procedure can be used with standard arrangements for clinical governance, consent, and audit. Evidence shows that the procedure reduces atrial fibrillation and its symptoms, increases the quality of life in the short term, and is safe.

Health Technology Evaluations (HTE) using the Early Value Assessment (EVA) approach 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 July 2025, NICE published a new EVA on digital front door technologies to gather service user information for NHS Talking Therapies for anxiety and depression assessments. It recommended two technologies as options for NHS Talking Therapies for anxiety and depression in people 16 years and over in the NHS during the evidence-generation period: Limbic Access (Limbic) and WYSA Digital Referral Assistant (WYSA).

Health Technology Evaluation with the Late Stage Assessment (LSA) approach aims to assess technologies that are in widespread or established use in the NHS to inform commissioning and procurement decisions. LSA evaluates whether incremental technological innovations within a category provide justifiable value for money, addressing the inconsistency in how such advancements are typically recognized and valued.

In July 2025, NICE published two new LSAs and made the following recommendations:

• A full range of One-piece closed bags for colostomies should be available for prescription in the NHS stoma care services, allowing healthcare professionals and patients to choose the most suitable option. The decision should be made collaboratively, considering factors like leakage and skin health. Currently, there is insufficient evidence to justify price differences between different bags, so the least expensive clinically appropriate option that meets the patient's needs should be used.
• Intermittent urethral catheters for chronic incomplete bladder emptying in adults should be chosen together by healthcare professionals and patients, considering ease of insertion, comfort, and infection risk. Due to limited evidence on price differences, the least expensive clinically appropriate catheter that meets the patient's needs should be used. Urology services should have access to a range of catheter options to ensure the most suitable choice for each patient.

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