Looking at the cost implications of using PCR-based respiratory panel assays for patients admitted to hospital with pneumonia in the UK, France and Spain
Our paper on the cost of using PCR-based respiratory panel assays for patients with pneumonia was published this week in BMC Pulmonary Medicine. This work, funded by the Innovative Health Initiative (IHI), compared the cost of using standard diagnostic tests with the cost of using either an upper respiratory pathogen PCR-based panel test, a lower Read More >
Exploring the cost-effectiveness of focused ultrasound in treating Essential Tremor in England
Medically refractory Essential Tremor (mrET) is the most common movement disorder affecting approximately 1 million in the United Kingdom and can be disabling. Medical treatment is not always successful at controlling tremors. Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) is a proven neurosurgical treatment; however, the risks of surgery and anaesthesia mean some patients are ineligible for DBS. Read More >
Further evidence that point of care (POC) testing for STIs means better clinical care for patients
Most people are now familiar with using rapid diagnostic tests with many people regularly using lateral flow tests for COVID-19. Within sexual health clinics, rapid testing for HIV has been widely used for a number of years but using rapid tests for other sexually transmitted infections (STIs) such as chlamydia and gonorrhoea is not yet Read More >
Analysing the COPD care pathway in Japan, Canada, England and Germany: a global view
Aquarius Population Health are delighted to be collaborating with AstraZeneca on a poster session at this year’s European Respiratory Society International Congress. Our research, based on clinician interviews and local data reviews, advances our understanding of COPD care pathways in Japan, Canada, England and Germany, and identifies cross cutting barriers to optimal COPD care, which Read More >
Aquarius part of collaborative NIHR grant to evaluate Odin Vision’s artificial intelligence technology to fight bowel cancer
In the UK, 42,000 new diagnoses and 16,000 deaths occur from bowel cancer each year. Bowel cancer is the second most common cause of cancer death in the UK, comprising over 10% of all deaths due to cancer. (1) A recent study found that almost one third of bowel cancer patients experience an avoidable delay Read More >
How much would community-based screening for chlamydia and gonorrhoea cost?
We collaborated with St George’s, University of London, on a NIHR-funded study ‘Test n Treat’ (TnT). This study assessed the cost of providing same-day chlamydia and gonorrhoea testing and treatment service at higher education colleges. The paper presenting this work was published in BMC Health Services Research and is now available online.
Could a same day test and treatment service in further education colleges improve uptake of chlamydia testing among young people?
Aquarius were part of a recent feasibility trial looking at whether provision of a same day test and treatment service for chlamydia in further education colleges increased uptake of chlamydia testing and treatment. The results of the trial were published this week in Clinical Microbiology and Infection and are available online.
Evaluating multi-bug point-of-care tests for diagnosing STIs
New point-of-care (POC) tests are currently being developed which can be used in clinic to simultaneously test for multiple sexually transmitted infections (STIs). In work now published online in BMJ Open, we developed a model to compare three possible strategies for POC STI testing with the current practice of microscopy and lab-based testing. The three Read More >
The NHS wastes more than £7 billion because it’s slow to use new diagnostics
An article authored by Aquarius was published today on the British In Vitro Diagnostics Association (BIVDA) website. The article commissioned jointly by BIVDA and Innovate UK suggests that the NHS could save over £6.9 billion in 5 years by making better use of diagnostic tests already on the market. These savings could have a huge Read More >
Assessing the impact of point-of-care testing for influenza and RSV in children admitted to hospital
The winter flu season brings added pressure to emergency and acute hospital services. In the UK, children and infants account for more than a third of flu related hospital admissions since flu and respiratory syncytial viruses (RSV) can be particularly severe in children, particularly those with existing conditions such as asthma. In our recent paper Read More >