A recent study indicates that CaRi-Heart® technology could significantly enhance cardiac care in the UK, potentially saving nearly 1,000 lives each year. This aligns with the National Health Service (NHS)’s emphasis on preventive healthcare.
OXFORD, England, Oct. 22, 2024 – Caristo Diagnostics, a leader in cardiovascular diagnostics, has released findings from a new peer-reviewed study. The research shows that CaRi-Heart® technology can be effectively integrated into the NHS, providing a cost-effective solution that could lower cardiac death rates by 12%. The study, titled “Cost-effectiveness of a novel AI technology to quantify coronary inflammation and cardiovascular risk in patients undergoing routine Coronary Computed Tomography Angiography,” was published in the European Heart Journal: Quality of Care and Clinical Outcomes.
This research involved clinical investigators from the UK, USA, and Australia. It suggests that the CaRi-Heart care pathway is an effective way to prevent complications from coronary artery disease (CAD), which is a significant goal of the UK Government for the NHS.
Tackling A Major Health Crisis
Coronary artery disease is the leading cause of death in the UK, creating a substantial burden on healthcare systems and the economy. The cost of CAD to the NHS is £7.4 billion annually, with an additional £15.8 billion lost in economic productivity.
Traditional assessments of cardiac risk often rely on demographic and clinical data, which can underestimate true risks, particularly in patients without obvious CAD symptoms. This gap represents a crucial area for improvement in preventive care.
The CaRi-Heart pathway enhances this process by analyzing standard coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA) scans. It reveals coronary inflammation, a significant contributor to heart attacks and strokes that standard scans often miss. By quantifying this inflammation, the technology provides better predictions of major adverse cardiac events (MACE) such as heart attacks and strokes. The study’s findings suggest that integrating the CaRi-Heart pathway could decrease cardiac deaths by 12%, myocardial infarctions by 11%, strokes by 4%, and heart failure events by 4%. These results are based on simulations involving 5,000 patients undergoing CCTA over a lifetime.
A Cost-Effective Solution
The study highlights that the integration of the CaRi-Heart pathway into regular NHS practices would not only be effective but also financially viable. The AI-driven approach would lower the occurrence of major cardiovascular events, achieving an incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) ranging from £1,371 to £3,244 per quality-adjusted life year (QALY). This cost is significantly below the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s threshold of £20,000 to £30,000, marking CaRi-Heart technology as a cost-effective option for enhancing cardiac care.
Supporting The NHS Focus on Prevention
On September 25, 2024, UK Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Wes Streeting, announced the government’s vision for NHS reform. This vision includes three key shifts: transitioning from analogue to digital, moving care from hospitals to communities, and prioritizing prevention over treatment. The CaRi-Heart technology’s capability to predict the risk of a fatal heart attack up to a decade in advance fits well with this strategy. By implementing this technology across the NHS, healthcare providers can identify cardiovascular risks sooner, reduce hospital admissions, and focus on preventive care.
“The CaRi-Heart care pathway could revolutionize cardiac care in the UK and beyond,” said Prof. Keith Channon, MD, a co-author of the study, Chief Medical Officer at Caristo, and Professor of Cardiovascular Medicine at the University of Oxford.
“Our technology supports the government’s goal of modernizing the NHS, cutting costs, and most importantly, saving lives by shifting from reactive to preventative healthcare.”
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