REDWOOD CITY, Calif. – June 5, 2019 – Heartflow, Inc. today announced that NHS England has extended Heartflow’s participation in the Innovation and Technology Payment (ITP) program for an additional year. As part of the extension, NHS England will provide reimbursement to NHS hospitals for the usage of the Heartflow FFRCT Analysis, a non-invasive cardiac test for stable symptomatic patients with coronary heart disease (CHD), until March 31, 2020.
The Heartflow Analysis was chosen as a new technology to be funded by ITP in April 2018 through a competitive process of nearly 300 applicants. The goal of the ITP is to create the conditions necessary for proven innovations to be adopted faster and more systematically throughout the NHS. More than 35 hospitals adopted use of the Heartflow Analysis during the first year of the ITP program, and it is anticipated that an additional 30 hospitals will adopt the Heartflow Analysis with the extension.
“Using the Heartflow Analysis has transformed our paradigm for investigating chest pain. It has dramatically reduced the numbers of patients requiring invasive investigation and has allowed strategic targeting of therapy for those patients who still require invasive angiography, which saves both time and expense,” said Dr. Philip Strike, Interventional Cardiologist, Queen Alexandra Hospital, Portsmouth. “It has allowed sensible and safe waiting list management and allowed prioritization of higher risk patients by removing unnecessary invasive assessment in other patients.”
“The Heartflow Analysis provides both anatomy and function in a single test, which has transformed our cardiac CT service from a simple CHD ‘rule-out service’ to a sophisticated clinical triaging and decision-making service,” said Dr. Matthias Schmitt, Consultant Cardiologist, Service Lead for Cardiac Imaging, Wythenshawe Campus and Staff Governor (Medical), Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust. “The application of this technology has reduced the number of referrals to the catheterization laboratory that do not lead to subsequent revascularization, but more importantly, has prevented patients from having to take more time away from work for additional testing.”
“For every five patients who have a cardiac CT and a Heartflow Analysis, four patients go home knowing they don’t need anything else. Half of those patients will be on cholesterol tablets because they have early disease, and the other half will have normal coronary arteries,” said Dr. Derek Connolly, Consultant Interventional Cardiologist, Sandwell & West Birmingham Hospitals NHS Trust. “Incorporating the Heartflow Analysis has had a meaningful impact at our hospitals, improving the diagnosis and treatment of the leading cause of death.”
The ITP designation for the Heartflow Analysis follows medical technology guidance issued by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) in February 2017, which recommended the Heartflow Analysis as the most cost-effective option following a coronary computed tomography angiogram (CTA) when additional information is needed by the clinician for patients with stable chest pain. Additionally, NICE clinical guidelines recommend coronary CTA as the initial diagnostic test for most patients with stable chest pain.
“We are delighted that NHS England recognizes the impact of the Heartflow Analysis in improving the patient experience and enhancing clinical decision making and efficiency,” said Dana G. Mead, Jr., President and Chief Executive Officer, Heartflow. “With the ITP extension, we look forward to working with NHS hospitals to make the Heartflow Analysis available to more clinicians and their patients.”
About the Heartflow FFRCT Analysis
Data from a patient’s non-invasive coronary CTA are securely uploaded from the hospital’s system to Heartflow’s software application running in the AWS cloud. Heartflow leverages deep learning and highly trained analysts to create a personalized, digital 3D model of the patient’s coronary arteries. The Heartflow Analysis then uses powerful computer algorithms to solve millions of complex equations to simulate blood flow and assess the impact of blockages on coronary blood flow. The Heartflow Analysis is provided via a secure online interface to offer actionable information to enable clinicians to determine the optimal course of treatment. The Heartflow Analysis offers the highest per-vessel diagnostic performance available from a non-invasive test. To date, clinicians around the world have used the Heartflow Analysis for more than 30,000 patients to aid in the diagnosis of heart disease.
About Heartflow, Inc.
Heartflow, Inc. is a digital health company uniquely positioned at the intersection of advanced artificial intelligence and healthcare to transform how heart disease is diagnosed and treated. Our non-invasive Heartflow FFRCT Analysis leverages deep learning to create a personalized 3D model of the heart. By using this model, clinicians can better evaluate the impact a blockage has on blood flow and determine the best treatment for patients. Our technology is reflective of our Silicon Valley roots and incorporates decades of scientific evidence with the latest advances in artificial intelligence. The Heartflow FFRCT Analysis is commercially available in the United States, Canada, Europe and Japan. For more information, visit www.Heartflow.com.
- Driessen, R., et al. Comparison of Coronary Computed Tomography Angiography, Fractional Flow Reserve, and Perfusion Imaging for Ischemia Diagnosis. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2019;73(2),161-73.