This is a bibliographic record of a published health technology assessment from a member of INAHTA. No evaluation of the quality of this assessment has been made for the HTA database.

The objectives were to assess the clinical and economic implications of point-of-care (POC) monitoring devices for long-term oral anticoagulation therapy (OAT).

1. POC devices can improve health. Using POC devices to manage OAT results in significantly fewer deaths and thromboembolic events, and better INR control than conventional laboratory testing, with no significant difference in hemorrhagic events.

2. POC devices can reduce costs. Compared to laboratory testing, using POC devices in anticoagulation clinics is cost-saving compared with conventional testing for health care payers. It is also cost effective if society is willing to pay 50,000 USD for a quality-adjusted life-year (QALY). Selftesting by patients compared to laboratory testing does not seem to be cost effective from a publicly funded health care perspective.

3. Additional resources are required. Up to 24% of OAT patients in Canada could be eligible for self-testing or self-management with POC devices. The capital outlay for these patients would be 50 million USD and the annual costs for consumables would be 18 million USD.