June 2026 Med Tech-related health technology assessments from the NIHR in England

The National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) funds valuable independent research for health and social care decision-makers in England. Reports from the Health Technology Assessment (HTA) Programme are published in the NIHR HTA Journal and inform the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidance. 

In June 2026, four Med Tech-related assessments were published in the NIHR HTA Journal, including the following:

Newborn screening for severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID) in the NHS newborn blood spot screening programme.

• The assessment was based on the systematic review. 
• It was concluded that the current published evidence base alone is not adequate to fully support the implementation of newborn blood spot screening for SCID. 
• While some evidence suggests that earlier diagnosis through screening may improve survival compared with diagnosis after clinical presentation, the evidence remains limited. Screening algorithms that include repeat sampling in preterm babies may reduce false-positive results, but the positive predictive value for SCID remains poor because many other conditions can also produce positive screening results. 

Plain balloon angioplasty +/- bare metal stenting versus drug-coated balloon angioplasty +/- bare metal stenting versus primary drug-eluting stenting in patients with chronic limb-threatening ischemia.

• The assessment was based on an open-label, three-arm, randomized, multi-center, phase 3 trial (BASIL-3).
• It was concluded that neither drug-coated balloon angioplasty ± bare metal stenting, nor drug-eluting stenting, conferred significant clinical benefit over plain balloon angioplasty ± bare metal stenting when used in the femoro-popliteal segment.
• Drug-eluting stenting and drug-coated balloon angioplasty in chronic limb-threatening ischemia patients were found to offer moderate benefits in health economic outcomes, particularly when drug-eluting stenting was compared to plain balloon angioplasty.

The other assessments concerned a systematic review and economic evaluation of placental growth factor (PLGF)-based testing to help diagnose suspected pre-eclampsia and early value assessment of  digital front door technologies to pre-assess people before assessment for NHS Talking Therapies.

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