Cost Effective Monitoring

  • Resource: IBDoc
  • Date: February 20, 2018

Using IBDoc Faecal Calprotectin Testing Post Induction of anti-TNF Therapy

G. Elsafi et al. Department of Gastroenterology, Mercy University Hospital, Cork

At UEGW in Barcelona in October 2017 Dr. Elsafi and colleagues published a poster entitled “Cost effectiveness of IBDoc as a surrogate marker of mucosal healing in IBD patients post induction of biological agents”

This poster described their study of IBD patients who had recently commenced anti-TNFα drug therapy.

Traditionally patients starting biologics have a follow up appointment in the clinic after 3 months and a routine colonoscopy at 6 months, to assess mucosal healing.

131 patients were provided with the BÜHLMANN IBDoc® assay, enabling them to test their own calprotectin levels at home at the 3 and 6 months post induction of biological agents. This avoided the need to attend hospital appointments to obtain a calprotectin result. Results from the IBDoc tests were transferred to the gastroenterology team’s database.

At the 3 month assessments the IBDoc results showed that 40% of the patients had normal calprotectin levels. After 6 months 75% of the patients showed normal calprotectin levels.

Of the 78 patients that had a raised IBDoc calprotectin at 3 months, 28% of these had a normal reading after 6 months.

Overall, using the IBDoc calprotectin results  as indicators of mucosal healing, a total of 53 clinic visits and 62 colonoscopies were not required because the calprotectin results were within normal limits.

This represents a significant cost saving plus the benefits of better managed healthcare resources, reducing demand and therefore the waiting times for both clinic visits and colonoscopies.

Cost Effective Monitoring Figure1Cost Effective Monitoring Figure2

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