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NICE opens consultation on a new device for managing acute or chronic wounds

London, UK (November 14, 2013) – The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) today (14 November), starts consulting on its draft medical technology guidance on a device that aims to help improve the treatment of wounds. The draft medical technology guidance supports the case for adopting the Debrisoft monofilament debridement pad as part of the management of acute or chronic wounds in community settings.

Debridement is a procedure to remove dead, damaged, or infected tissue from a wound to give the remaining healthy tissue a better chance to heal. Debrisoft is a single-use polyester fibre pad. To use, it is gently wiped across the wound and the pus, dead cells and wound debris are removed by sticking to the monofilament fibres. Using this device, debridement takes 2 to 4 minutes per wound, and is done without need for analgesia. There are several standard methods of debridement used which depend on the clinical setting and the type of wound, including using a scalpel, gauze swabs, jets of water, dressings to support wound healing and compression bandages.

Benefits which the device manufacturer claims that the Debrisoft pad can provide include reducing pain associated with debridement, enabling faster treatment and healing with reduced frequency and total episodes of care, fewer nurse visits needed, and reduced risks of trauma to healthy tissue, and of bleeding. Based on modelling, the savings from using the Debrisoft pad in the community setting are estimated to be between £99 and £484 per patient for complete debridement compared with current practice.

Professor Carole Longson, Director of the NICE Centre for Health Technology Evaluation, said: “Chronic wounds, such as pressure and leg ulcers, and acute wounds such as those occurring as a burn or as a complication of surgery, affect hundreds of thousands of people. In this draft guidance, the independent Medical Technologies Advisory Committee (MTAC) considered that there was evidence to support the use of the Debrisoft pad to treat acute or chronic wounds in the community. This use was estimated to potentially save the NHS up to £484 per patient for the complete debridement of a wound, compared to standard management. In addition to faster healing, the manufacturer also claims that the device is associated with improved acceptability to patients with reduced fear and anxiety associated with treatment, offering advantages to both patients and the NHS. We welcome comments on the draft guidance as part of the current consultation.”

Find out more information on the medical technology draft guidance consultation for the Debrisoft pad.  The consultation closes on 12 December 2013.

About the NICE guidance

1. The draft medical technologies guidance, “The Debrisoft monofilament debridement pad for use in acute or chronic wounds”, is available at http://guidance.nice.org.uk/MT/192/Consultation/Latest

2. The Debrisoft pad manufactured by Activa Healthcare.

3. The potential for savings per patient for complete debridement ranges from savings of between £99 and £484 in a community clinic; and between £222 and £469 in the home, compared with current community management options.

4. Around 200,000 people each year have chronic wounds, and those with acute wounds include an estimated 250,000 burns patients.

5. The cost of 1 Debrisoft monofilament debridement pad stated in the sponsor’s submission is £6.19 (excluding VAT).

About the Medical Technologies Evaluation Programme

6. Established by NICE in 2009, the focus of this area of work is specifically on the evaluation of innovative medical technologies, including devices and diagnostics. The types of products which might be included are medical devices that deliver treatment such as those implanted during surgical procedures, technologies that give greater independence to patients, and diagnostic devices or tests used to detect or monitor medical conditions. The independent Medical Technology Advisory Committee has two core remits: selecting medical technologies for evaluation by NICE guidance programmes and also developing medical technologies guidance itself. The guidance applies to the NHS in England, and is not mandatory.

More information is available at http://www.nice.org.uk/MT.

About NICE

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is the independent body responsible for driving improvement and excellence in the health and social care system. We develop guidance, standards and information on high-quality health and social care. We also advise on ways to promote healthy living and prevent ill health.

Formerly the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence, our name changed on 1 April 2013 to reflect our new and additional responsibility to develop guidance and set quality standards for social care, as outlined in the Health and Social Care Act (2012).

Our aim is to help practitioners deliver the best possible care and give people the most effective treatments, which are based on the most up-to-date evidence and provide value for money, in order to reduce inequalities and variation.

Our products and resources are produced for the NHS, local authorities, care providers, charities, and anyone who has a responsibility for commissioning or providing healthcare, public health or social care services.

To find out more about what we do, visit our website: www.nice.org.uk and follow us on Twitter: @NICEComms

This page was last updated: 13 November 2013

National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), 14.11.2013. (tB)