Changing the Health Behavior of Patients With Cardiovascular Disease Through an Electronic Health Intervention in Three Different Countries: Cost-Effectiveness Study in the Do Cardiac Health: Advanced New Generation Ecosystem (Do CHANGE) 2 Randomized Controlled Trial

Strengthening primary health care in Europe with digital solutions

This article provides an in-depth analysis of digital transformation in European primary healthcare (PHC). It assesses the impact of digital technology on healthcare delivery and management, highlighting variations in digital maturity across Europe. It emphasizes the significance of digital tools, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, in enhancing accessibility and efficiency in healthcare. It discusses the integration of telehealth, remote monitoring, and e-health solutions, showcasing their role in patient empowerment and proactive care. Examples are included from various countries, such as Greece's ePrescription system, Lithuania's adoption of remote consultations, Spain's use of risk stratification solutions, and the Netherlands' advanced use of telemonitoring solutions, to illustrate the diverse implementation of digital solutions in PHC. The article offers insights into the challenges and opportunities of embedding digital technologies into a multidisciplinary healthcare framework, pointing towards future directions for PHC in Europe.

Economic Evaluation Associated With Clinical-Grade Mobile App-Based Digital Therapeutic Interventions: Systematic Review

BACKGROUND

Digital therapeutics (DTx), a class of software-based clinical interventions, are promising new technologies that can potentially prevent, manage, or treat a spectrum of medical disorders and diseases as well as deliver unprecedented portability for patients and scalability for health care providers. Their adoption and implementation were accelerated by the need for remote care during the COVID-19 pandemic, and awareness about their utility has rapidly grown among providers, payers, and regulators. Despite this, relatively little is known about the capacity of DTx to provide economic value in care.

OBJECTIVE

This study aimed to systematically review and summarize the published evidence regarding the cost-effectiveness of clinical-grade mobile app-based DTx and explore the factors affecting such evaluations.

METHODS

A systematic review of economic evaluations of clinical-grade mobile app-based DTx was conducted following the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) 2020 guidelines. Major electronic databases, including PubMed, Cochrane Library, and Web of Science, were searched for eligible studies published from inception to October 28, 2022. Two independent reviewers evaluated the eligibility of all the retrieved articles for inclusion in the review. Methodological quality and risk of bias were assessed for each included study.

RESULTS

A total of 18 studies were included in this review. Of the 18 studies, 7 (39%) were nonrandomized study-based economic evaluations, 6 (33%) were model-based evaluations, and 5 (28%) were randomized clinical trial-based evaluations. The DTx intervention subject to assessment was found to be cost-effective in 12 (67%) studies, cost saving in 5 (28%) studies, and cost-effective in 1 (6%) study in only 1 of the 3 countries where it was being deployed in the final study. Qualitative deficiencies in methodology and substantial potential for bias, including risks of performance bias and selection bias in participant recruitment, were identified in several included studies.

CONCLUSIONS

This systematic review supports the thesis that DTx interventions offer potential economic benefits. However, DTx economic analyses conducted to date exhibit important methodological shortcomings that must be addressed in future evaluations to reduce the uncertainty surrounding the widespread adoption of DTx interventions.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

PROSPERO International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews CRD42022358616; https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/display_record.php?ID=CRD42022358616.

Practical dietary interventions to prevent cardiovascular disease suitable for implementation in primary care: an ADAPTE-guided systematic review of international clinical guidelines

PURPOSE

Cardiovascular diseases (CVD) are the leading cause of death globally. The current model of care for high-income countries involves preventive medication and highly trained healthcare professionals, which is expensive and not transposable to low-income countries. An innovative, effective approach adapted to limited human, technical, and financial resources is required. Measures to reduce CVD risk factors, including diet, are proven to be effective. The survey "Scaling-up Packages of Interventions for Cardiovascular disease prevention in selected sites in Europe and Sub-Saharan Africa" aims to develop non-pharmacological cardiovascular prevention and control programs in primary care and community settings in high, middle, and low-income countries. This review aims to identify the existing, validated dietary interventions for primary CVD prevention from national and international clinical guidelines that can be implemented in primary care and communities.

METHODS

A systematic review of CVD prevention guidelines was conducted between September 2017 and March 2023 using the Turning Research Into Practice medical database, the Guidelines International Network, and a purposive search. The ADAPTE procedure was followed. Two researchers independently conducted the searches and appraisals. Guidelines published after 01/01/2012 addressing non-pharmacological, dietary interventions for primary CVD prevention or CVD risk factor management, in the adult general population in primary care or in community settings were included and appraised using the Appraisal of Guidelines Research and Evaluation II score. Individual dietary recommendations and the studies supporting them were extracted. Then supporting data about each specific dietary intervention were extracted into a matrix.

RESULTS

In total, 1375 guidelines were identified, of which 39 were included. From these, 383 recommendations, covering 10 CVD prevention themes were identified. From these recommendations, 165 studies for effective dietary interventions for CVD prevention were found. Among these, the DASH diet was the most effective on multiple CVD risk factors. Combining diet with other interventions such as exercise and smoking cessation increased efficacy. No guidelines provided detailed implementation strategies.

CONCLUSION

The DASH diet combined with other interventions was the most effective on an individual basis. However, expansion in the wider population seems difficult, without government support to implement regulations such as reducing salt content in processed food.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

Clinical Trials NCT03886064.

Cost-effectiveness of Digital Tools for Behavior Change Interventions Among People With Chronic Diseases: Systematic Review

BACKGROUND

Chronic diseases, including cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and cerebrovascular diseases, contribute to the most significant disease burden worldwide, negatively impacting patients and their family members. People with chronic diseases have common modifiable behavioral risk factors, including smoking, alcohol overconsumption, and unhealthy diets. Digital-based interventions for promoting and sustaining behavioral changes have flourished in recent years, although evidence of the cost-effectiveness of such interventions remains inconclusive.

OBJECTIVE

In this study, we aimed to investigate the cost-effectiveness of digital health interventions for behavioral changes among people with chronic diseases.

METHODS

This systematic review evaluated published studies focused on the economic evaluation of digital tools for behavioral change among adults with chronic diseases. We followed the Population, Intervention, Comparator, and Outcomes framework to retrieve relevant publications from 4 databases: PubMed, CINAHL, Scopus, and Web of Science. We used the Joanna Briggs Institute's criteria for economic evaluation and randomized controlled trials to assess the risk of bias in the studies. Two researchers independently screened, assessed the quality, and extracted data from the studies selected for the review.

RESULTS

In total, 20 studies published between 2003 and 2021 fulfilled our inclusion criteria. All the studies were conducted in high-income countries. These studies used telephones, SMS text messaging, mobile health apps, and websites as digital tools for behavior change communication. Most digital tools for interventions focused on diet and nutrition (17/20, 85%) and physical activity (16/20, 80%), and a few focused on smoking and tobacco control (8/20, 40%), alcohol reduction (6/20, 30%), and reduction of salt intake (3/20, 15%). Most studies (17/20, 85%) used the health care payer perspective for economic analysis, and only 15% (3/20) used the societal perspective. Only 45% (9/20) of studies conducted a full economic evaluation. Most studies (7/20, 35%) based on full economic evaluation and 30% (6/20) of studies based on partial economic evaluation found digital health interventions to be cost-effective and cost-saving. Most studies had short follow-ups and failed to include proper indicators for economic evaluation, such as quality-adjusted life-years, disability-adjusted life-years, lack of discounting, and sensitivity analysis.

CONCLUSIONS

Digital health interventions for behavioral change among people with chronic diseases are cost-effective in high-income settings and can therefore be scaled up. Similar evidence from low- and middle-income countries based on properly designed studies for cost-effectiveness evaluation is urgently required. A full economic evaluation is needed to provide robust evidence for the cost-effectiveness of digital health interventions and their potential for scaling up in a wider population. Future studies should follow the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence recommendations to take a societal perspective, apply discounting, address parameter uncertainty, and apply a lifelong time horizon.

A longitudinal assessment of chronic care pathways in real-life: self-care and outcomes of chronic heart failure patients in Tuscany

Background

Worldwide healthcare systems face challenges in assessing and monitoring chronic care pathways and, even more, the value generated for patients. Patient-reported outcomes measures (PROMs) represent a valid Real-World Evidence (RWE) source to fully assess health systems’ performance in managing chronic care pathways.

Methods

The originality of the study consists in the chance of adopting PROMs, as a longitudinal assessment tool for continuous monitoring of patients’ adherence to therapies and self-care behavior recommendations in clinical practice and as a chance to provide policy makers insights to improve chronic pathways adopting a patient perspective. The focus was on PROMs of patients with chronic heart failure (CHF) collected in the Gabriele Monasterio Tuscan Foundation (FTGM), a tertiary referral CHF centre in Pisa, Italy. During the hospital stay, CHF patients were enrolled and received a link (via SMS or email) to access to the first questionnaire. Follow-up questionnaires were sent 1, 7 and 12 months after the index hospitalisation. Professionals invited 200 patients to participate to PROMs surveys. 174 answers were digitally collected at baseline from 2018 to 2020 and analysed. Quantitative and qualitative analyses were conducted, using Chi2, t-tests and regression models together with narrative evidence from free text responses.

Results

Both quantitative and qualitative results showed FTGM patients declared to strongly adhere to the pharmacological therapy across the entire pathway, while seemed less careful to adhere to self-care behavior recommendations (e.g., physical activity). CHF patients that performed adequate Self-Care Maintenance registered outcome improvements. Respondents declared to be supported by family members in managing their adherence.

Conclusions

The features of such PROMs collection model are relevant for researchers, policymakers and for managers to implement interventions aimed at improving pathway adherence dimensions. Among those, behavioral economics interventions could be implemented to increase physical activity among CHF patients since proven successful in Tuscany. Strategies to increase territorial care and support patients’ caregivers in their daily support to patients’ adherence should be further explored. Systematic PROMs collection would allow to monitor changes in the whole pathway organization. This study brings opportunities for extending such monitoring systems to other organizations to allow for reliable benchmarking opportunities.

Cost-Effectiveness of Mobile Health-Based Integrated Care for Atrial Fibrillation: Model Development and Data Analysis

BACKGROUND

Mobile health (mHealth) technology is increasingly used in disease management. Using mHealth tools to integrate and streamline care has improved clinical outcomes of patients with atrial fibrillation (AF).

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study was to investigate the potential clinical and health economic outcomes of mHealth-based integrated care for AF from the perspective of a public health care provider in China.

METHODS

A Markov model was designed to compare outcomes of mHealth-based care and usual care in a hypothetical cohort of patients with AF in China. The time horizon was 30 years with monthly cycles. Model outcomes measured were direct medical cost, quality-adjusted life years (QALYs), and incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER). Sensitivity analyses were performed to examine the robustness of the base-case results.

RESULTS

In the base-case analysis, mHealth-based care gained higher QALYs of 0.0730 with an incurred cost of US $1090. Using US $33,438 per QALY (three times the gross domestic product) as the willingness-to-pay threshold, mHealth-based care was cost-effective, with an ICER of US $14,936 per QALY. In one-way sensitivity analysis, no influential factor with a threshold value was identified. In probabilistic sensitivity analysis, mHealth-based care was accepted as cost-effective in 92.33% of 10,000 iterations.

CONCLUSIONS

This study assessed the expected cost-effectiveness of applying mHealth-based integrated care for AF according to a model-based health economic evaluation. The exploration suggested the potential cost-effective use of mHealth apps in streamlining and integrating care via the Atrial fibrillation Better Care (ABC) pathway for AF in China. Future economic evaluation alongside randomized clinical trials is highly warranted to verify the suggestion and investigate affecting factors such as geographical variations in patient characteristics, identification of subgroups, and constraints on local implementation.

Facilitators and Barriers to the Adoption of Telemedicine During the First Year of COVID-19: Systematic Review

BACKGROUND

The virulent and unpredictable nature of COVID-19 combined with a change in reimbursement mechanisms both forced and enabled the rapid adoption of telemedicine around the world. Thus, it is important to now assess the effects of this rapid adoption and to determine whether the barriers to such adoption are the same today as they were under prepandemic conditions.

OBJECTIVE

The objective of this systematic literature review was to examine the research literature published during the COVID-19 pandemic to identify facilitators, barriers, and associated medical outcomes as a result of adopting telemedicine, and to determine if changes have occurred in the industry during this time.

METHODS

The systematic review was performed in accordance with the Kruse protocol and the results are reported in accordance with the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) guidelines. We analyzed 46 research articles from five continents published during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic that were retrieved from searches in four research databases: PubMed (MEDLINE), CINAHL, Science Direct, and Web of Science.

RESULTS

Reviewers identified 25 facilitator themes and observations, 12 barrier themes and observations, and 14 results (compared to a control group) themes and observations. Overall, 22% of the articles analyzed reported strong satisfaction or satisfaction (zero reported a decline in satisfaction), 27% reported an improvement in administrative or efficiency results (as compared with a control group), 14% reported no statistically significant difference from the control group, and 40% and 10% reported an improvement or no statistically significant difference in medical outcomes using the telemedicine modality over the control group, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS

The pandemic encouraged rapid adoption of telemedicine, which also encouraged practices to adopt the modality regardless of the challenges identified in previous research. Several barriers remain for health policymakers to address; however, health care administrators can feel confident in the modality as the evidence largely shows that it is safe, effective, and widely accepted.

Cost-Effectiveness Assessment of Internet of Things in Smart Cities

With the ongoing rapid urbanization of city regions and the growing need for (cost-)effective healthcare provision, governments need to address urban challenges with smart city interventions. In this context, impact assessment plays a key role in the decision-making process of assessing cost-effectiveness of Internet of Things-based health service applications in cities, as it identifies the interventions that can obtain the best results for citizens' health and well-being. We present a new methodology to evaluate smart city projects and interventions through the MAFEIP tool, a recent online tool for cost-effectiveness analysis that has been used extensively to test information and communications technology solutions for healthy aging. Resting on the principles of Markov models, the purpose of the MAFEIP tool is to estimate the outcomes of a large variety of social and technological innovations, by providing an early assessment of the likelihood of achieving anticipated impacts through interventions of choice. Thus, the analytical model suggested in this article provides smart city projects with an evidence-based assessment to improve their efficiency and effectivity, by comparing the costs and the efforts invested, with the corresponding results.

Guided Internet-Based Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Depression: Implementation Cost-Effectiveness Study

Background

Major depressive disorder is a chronic condition; its prevalence is expected to grow with the aging trend of high-income countries. Internet-based cognitive-behavioral therapy has proven efficacy in treating major depressive disorder.

Objective

The objective of this study was to assess the cost-effectiveness of implementing a community internet-based cognitive behavioral therapy intervention (Super@, the Spanish program for the MasterMind project) for treating major depressive disorder.

Methods

The cost-effectiveness of the Super@ program was assessed with the Monitoring and Assessment Framework for the European Innovation Partnership on Active and Healthy Ageing tool, using a 3-state Markov model. Data from the cost and effectiveness of the intervention were prospectively collected from the implementation of the program by a health care provider in Badalona, Spain; the corresponding data for usual care were gathered from the literature. The health states, transition probabilities, and utilities were computed using Patient Health Questionnaire–9 scores.

Results

The analysis was performed using data from 229 participants using the Super@ program. Results showed that the intervention was more costly than usual care; the discounted (3%) and nondiscounted incremental cost-effectiveness ratios were €29,367 and €26,484 per quality-adjusted life-year, respectively (approximately US $35,299 and $31,833, respectively). The intervention was cost-effective based on the €30,000 willingness-to-pay threshold typically applied in Spain (equivalent to approximately $36,060). According to the deterministic sensitivity analyses, the potential reduction of costs associated with intervention scale-up would reduce the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio of the intervention, although it remained more costly than usual care. A discount in the incremental effects up to 5% exceeded the willingness-to-pay threshold of €30,000.

Conclusions

The Super@ program, an internet-based cognitive behavioral therapy intervention for treating major depressive disorder, cost more than treatment as usual. Nevertheless, its implementation in Spain would be cost-effective from health care and societal perspectives, given the willingness-to-pay threshold of €30,000 compared with treatment as usual.

BeyondSilos, a Telehealth-Enhanced Integrated Care Model in the Domiciliary Setting for Older Patients: Observational Prospective Cohort Study for Effectiveness and Cost-Effectiveness Assessments

BACKGROUND

Information and communication technology may provide domiciliary care programs with continuity of care. However, evidence about the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of information and communication technology in the context of integrated care models is relatively scarce.

OBJECTIVE

The objective of our study was to provide evidence on the clinical effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of the BeyondSilos project for patients enrolled in the Badalona city pilot site in Spain.

METHODS

A quasi-experimental study was used to assess the cost-effectiveness of information and communication technology-enhanced integration of health and social care, including the third sector (intervention), compared to basic health and social care coordination (comparator). The study was conducted in Badalona between 2015 and 2016. Participants were followed for 8 months.

RESULTS

The study included 198 patients: 98 in the intervention group and 100 in the comparator group. The mean Barthel index remained unchanged in the intervention group (mean change 0.14, 95% CI -4.51 to 4.78; P=.95) but decreased in the comparator group (mean change -3.23, 95% CI -5.34 to -1.11; P=.003). Instrumental Activities of Daily Living significantly decreased in both groups: mean changes of -0.23 (95% CI -0.44 to -0.02; P=.03) and -0.33 (95% CI -0.46 to -0.20; P<.001) in the intervention and comparator groups, respectively. No differences were found in the Geriatric Depression Scale (intervention: mean change 0.28, 95% CI -0.44 to 1.01, P=.44; comparator: mean change -0.29, 95% CI -0.59 to 0.01, P=.06). The intervention showed cost-effectiveness (incremental cost-effectiveness ratio €6505.52, approximately US $7582).

CONCLUSIONS

The information and communication technology-enhanced integrated domiciliary care program was cost-effective. The beneficial effects of this approach strongly rely upon the commitment of the professional staff involved.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

ClinicalTrials.gov NCT03111004; http://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/ NCT03111004.