Supporting Vitacam to develop their health economic proposition

Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most commonly occurring heart arrhythmia, and a major preventable cause of stroke, heart failure, and other cardiovascular complications. Many patients are only diagnosed with AF when they experience complications, with an estimated half a million undiagnosed AF patients living in the UK. Causing an estimated 20% of strokes in the UK, AF places considerable strain on the NHS, estimated at up to £2.5 billion in 2020. Improved early detection of AF therefore provides a significant opportunity to reduce the impact of AF on NHS and social care resources, as well as on patients and carers.

Mass screening: an opportunity

While not currently recommended in the UK, mass screening programs are being increasingly promoted to improve detection of AF, reducing morbidity and mortality through early intervention and treatment. A number of technologies have recently been developed to enable remote monitoring of heart rhythm: Vitacam is one such technology, offering a potential mass screening tool that is simple, safe, and well accepted by patients and carers. However, evidence of the cost-effectiveness of Vitacam in a screening program is vital in order to promote further research and clinical trials.

Cost-Effectiveness Evaluation made Interactive

Edge Health were commissioned to undertake a health economic evaluation of Vitacam as an AF screening tool, providing insight on the cost-benefit that the technology could deliver under different future scenarios. To do this we modelled the number of additional AF diagnoses that would be made through use of Vitacam in an at-risk elderly population, compared to the current diagnostic approach, and estimated the number of strokes that would be avoided as a result. We quantified cost benefit of avoided strokes and stroke-related disability, and compared this to the costs of delivering screening, additional diagnostics, and treatment. We built an adjustable model in Excel, enabling users to understand the impact of varying different input parameters (e.g. screening population, Vitacam sensitivity and specificity) on the cost-effectiveness of the pathway. Our analysis provided novel insight, enabling future research and clinical trials to be designed and targeted appropriately, and providing target figures for Vitacam to reach in order to deliver cost-benefit.

“Edge Health worked closely with us to develop a deep understanding of the Vitacam technology and its potential impact, which they brought to life in their evaluation.”

Moyeen Ahmad: Co-founder and CEO of Vitacam