Canada’s Drug Agency | Drugs, Health Technologies and Systems.

Health Technology Update Issue 26

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This issue of Health Technology Update features brief summaries of information on a broad range of medical technologies — from a robotic wheelchair that uses gyroscope technology to a self-expanding pulmonary valve . These technologies were identified through the Canada's Drug Agency Horizon Scanning Service as topics potentially of interest to Canadian health care decision-makers.

The following seven articles on emerging technologies are featured in this issue:

Last Updated : June 12, 2020

Endobronchial Valves for the Treatment of Severe Emphysema


(December 17, 2024)
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Summary

  • Endobronchial valves are one-way valves placed in the airways of the most damaged parts of the lungs using bronchoscopy.
  • Endobronchial valves may be used as an alternative to surgery to achieve lung volume reduction and improve breathing in some people with severe emphysema.
  • Careful patient selection is critical to ensure that only the subset of patients who may benefit undergo the procedure.

Small Molecule Calcitonin Gene-Related Peptide Receptor Antagonists for the Acute Treatment of Migraine


(December 17, 2024)
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Summary

  • Migraine is a common neurological disease and one of the leading causes of disability. The majority of adults with migraine use medications for their migraine attacks. Triptans are the most commonly used medication for moderate to severe attacks. However, for one-third of people with migraine, triptans are not effective, have decreased response over time, or are contraindicated.

Lasmiditan for the Acute Treatment of Migraine


(December 17, 2024)
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Methods

These bulletins are not systematic reviews and do not involve critical appraisal or include a detailed summary of study findings. Rather, they present an overview of the technology and available evidence. They are not intended to provide recommendations for or against a technology.

Horizon Scan Roundup — 2019

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Introduction

A Compilation of New and Emerging Health Technologies From Around the World

Last Updated : March 13, 2020

Minimally invasive therapies for benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH)


(December 17, 2024)
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Summary

  • This bulletin builds on a Canada's Drug Agency Rapid Response Report that critically appraises recent evidence on treatments to alleviate lower urinary tract symptoms caused by benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH).
  • The focus of this bulletin is on four treatments:
    • prostatic urethral lift (the UroLift system)
    • water vapour thermal therapy (the Rezūm system)

Health Technology Update - Issue 26


(December 17, 2024)
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Gyrolift: A Robotic Wheelchair With Segway Technology

Early Identification of Ischemic Stroke

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Summary

  • Every year in Canada, there are more than 50,000 strokes and 14,000 deaths from stroke.
  • Ischemic stroke is the most common type of stroke: 85% of strokes are ischemic.
  • There are effective treatments for ischemic stroke: endovascular treatment (mechanical thrombectomy) and medical thrombolysis with intravenous tissue plasminogen activator (tPA), or alteplase. These treatments are time-sensitive.
Last Updated : March 19, 2020

Magnetic Resonance Guided Radiotherapy: MR-simulation, and MR-linac

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Summary

  • Magnetic Resonance Simulation (MR-Sim) is a diagnostic magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) platform that has been adapted to optimize radiotherapy treatment planning;1 Magnetic Resonance linear accelerator (MR-linac) systems are a new type of hybrid technology that allow for online MR-guidance for high-precision radiotherapy.2
  • Evidence on the performance of MR-guided radiotherapy (MRgRT) is limited.
Last Updated : January 15, 2020

Inclisiran: A Small Interfering RNA Molecule for Treating Hypercholesterolemia

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Summary

  • Atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) remains one of the leading causes of death in Canada. Cholesterol, specifically low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), is a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD) and is thereby targeted to reduce the likelihood of a cardiovascular event, such as a myocardial infarction (MI) and stroke.
Last Updated : December 9, 2019