Diagnostic algorithm shown to detect early signs of worsening heart failure and reduce hospitalisations for patients with cardiac implantable electronic devices
Boston Scientific (NYSE: BSX) announced that the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), which provides evidence-based recommendations to improve health and social care in the National Health Service in England and Wales, has issued guidance recommending the use of the HeartLogic™ Heart Failure Diagnostic as an option for managing heart failure in patients with cardiac implantable electronic devices.1
Heart failure is a condition that occurs when the heart is unable to pump enough blood and oxygen throughout the body, and can result in symptoms including fatigue, breathing problems or coughing. Today, heart failure is one of the leading causes of hospitalisation in western countries in people over the age of 65 and the average age of diagnosis is 77.2 In the U.K., the condition affects close to one million people with approximately 200,000 new diagnoses each year,3 and hospitalised heart failure patients can spend on average nine days in hospital, resulting in high burden on the NHS and society.4
“Early prediction of heart failure events enables physicians to intervene sooner – leading to better patient outcomes and reduced burden on the healthcare system – and we believe this decision will broaden the use of the HeartLogic Heart Failure Diagnostic among physicians,” said Angelo Auricchio, M.D., Ph. D., chief medical officer for Rhythm Management at Boston Scientific in Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA). “Remotely monitoring worsening heart failure can also reduce inequities, particularly in underserved, lower socioeconomic and remote communities who may be more reluctant to travel to hospitals, helping to address a key priority of the NHS.”
The HeartLogic Heart Failure Diagnostic, which has demonstrated accurate detection of patients at risk of heart failure events up to 34 days in advance5, incorporates multiple sensors and combines trend data into one composite index, sending clinicians a single actionable alert and detailed report when it crosses a clinician-set threshold. This allows early intervention and the potential to reduce patient hospitalisations. NICE found the HeartLogic diagnostic to be the most accurate and consistent of reviewed heart failure algorithms in the UK market.6
More information on the HeartLogic Heart Failure Diagnostic is available here.
References
1 – For information on the NICE guidance, visit: https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/DG61
2 – Fonarow GC, Abraham WT, Albert NM, et al. Association between performance measures and clinical outcomes for patients hospitalized with heart failure. JAMA. 2007;297(1):61–70. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17200476
3 – National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. NICE guideline NG106, Chronic Heart Failure in Adults: Diagnosis and Management, September 2018. Available at: https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng106
4 – ESC Atlas in Heart Failure – average length of stay in hospital primarily due to HF chart available at https://eatlas.escardio.org/Atlas/ESC-Atlas-in-Heart-Failure
5 – Boehmer, J et al., JACC-HF, 2017;5(3),2 1 6 – 2 56
6 – National Institute of Health and Care Excellence. NICE guidance DG72, Heart failure algorithms for remote monitoring in people with cardiac implantable electronic devices, Updated External Assessment Report (dated 20 March 2024), produced by Newcastle Technology Assessment Review Group, Newcastle University, published as part of committee papers, 14 May 2024. Available at: https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/gid-dg10080/documents/committee-papers
