Three new recommendations by the Danish Health Technology Council

The Danish Health Technology Council (Behandlingsrådet) launched in 2021 aimed to support the greater use of cost-effective technologies in the healthcare system through recommendations to regions and hospitals. The recommendations are not legally binding; however, it is expected that they will likely be followed and will impact funding decisions.

The Council develops two types of reports: evaluations and major analyses (større analyser). In both cases, there is a staged process: proposal, evaluation or analysis, decision, and implementation. However, there are some differences: 2-3 ‘major analyses’ are developed annually on the fundamental topics (e.g., treatment regimens, approaches to the organization of treatments) proposed by hospitals or regions (not industry); up to 15-25 ‘evaluations’ can be developed annually regarding marketed medical devices and health technologies proposed by any stakeholder (including industry).

In February 2024, the Health Technology Council accomplished two major analyses:

• Home non-invasive ventilation (home NIV) for the treatment of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD);
• Guided internet-based cognitive behavioral therapy for the treatment of adults with mild or moderate depression.

The Council recommended home NIV as a supplement to standard care for patients with COPD in one of the following clinical indications:

• Persistent respiratory insufficiency (paCO2 >7kPa) and more than two weeks since the last acute exacerbation;
• More than three NIV-requiring acute exacerbations within the last year;
• Patients who cannot be weaned from NIV after an acute exacerbation.

The Council did not recommend further adoption and spread of guided internet-based cognitive behavioral therapy (iKAT), as the existing evidence base is insufficient to conclude whether iKAT is better, equal, or worse than standard treatment for adults with mild or moderate depression. 

In February 2024, the Council accomplished one evaluation and recommended non-surgical management rather than surgery for the treatment of distal radius fractures in patients over 65 years of age. Non-surgical management was only compared to one surgical method - splint osteosynthesis with a volar angle-stable splint insertion. The evaluation concluded that non-surgical treatment had the same clinical effects as surgery in patients over 65 years and can be a cost-saving alternative. 

See the full details in Danish here.

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