Our analysts evaluate clinical trial data, along with information regarding safety issues, coverage policies from the private and public sectors, regulatory approvals, consensus statements, and an overall projection of the potential clinical efficacy and economic impact of the technology. Reports are reviewed annually up to 5 years post publication to determine if there is new literature or evidence that would impact a change in rating and warrant an updated report.
The lymphatic system accepts fluid from the extracellular tissue and transports it into the cirulatory system. Lymphedema develops when this process is impaired, resulting in retention of fluid and proteins with consequent swelling and hardening in the tissue.
Technology Description: The Flexitouch System is a programmable pneumatic compression device that is designed t…
Rationale: For some patients with cervicogenic headache or occipital neuralgia, conservative medical treatments, including oral analgesics and physical therapy, may be sufficient to relieve pain. However, a population of patients with refractory pain may require more invasive treatments, including injection therapy or surgical interventions.
Rationale: Cognitive rehabilitation therapy (CRT) is a treatment approach used for patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI) that focuses on improving cognitive impairments on attention, memory and learning, affect and expression, problem solving, and executive function.
Technology Description: CRT is m…
Rationale: Skin preparation products are used prior to surgery to quickly eliminate a wide range of microbes and provide a continuously high level of antimicrobial action for an extended duration of time.
Technology Description: Skin preparation products are used prior to surgery to quickly eliminate a wide range of microbes and provide a continuously h…
Patients with opioid use disorder may benefit from medication-assisted treatments that include a combination of medication and behavioral therapy.
Technology Description: Probuphine is an implantable system containing buprenorphine hydrochloride, which is an opioid partial agonist drug intended to ease symptoms of withdrawal and opioid cravings. The implantable system a…
Rationale: Ingestible capsules enable visualization or direct measurement of conditions in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract with no need to sedate or anesthetize the patient, no radiation exposure, and with little supervision or effort needed by the nurse or physician who monitors the procedure. Testing with wireless capsule systems offers an alternative to standard tests of GI…
Rationale: Combined positron emission tomography-computed tomography (PET-CT) has emerged as a tool for detecting and delineating lesions, staging and restaging disease, and predicting and monitoring response to treatment. The rationale for this imaging strategy is that accuracy may be improved by combining 2 types of data.
Technology Description: PET-C…
Patients with osteoarthritis (OA) of the knee may experience chronic pain that is refractory to conservative treatments.
Technology Description: Peripheral nerve ablation (PNA) involves the delivery of heat to the genicular nerve, causing thermocoagulation and localized neuronal tissue destruction, with the overall goal of reducing pain and improving function.
Rationale: Medical therapy can ameliorate symptoms associated with aortic or mitral prosthetic paravalvular leaks (PVLs). However, repeat cardiac surgery is associated with increased morbidity and mortality, with added risk secondary to paravalvular tissue friability and heavy calcification. Thus, percutaneous closure of prosthetic PVLs is under inv…
Rationale: Discography evaluates the suspected culprit discs with abnormal morphology and, as a control, normal discs. In theory, the combination of imaging that demonstrates disc degeneration or internal disc disruption and provoking the patient’s usual pain confirms a tested disc as a source of pain.
Technology Description: Discography involves image-…