REVASK – Care analysis for myocardial revascularization therapy

>Federal Joint Committee | Innovation Fund

Supply curvesData linkage

The PMV research group is involved in the REVASK-Project which is funded by the Innovation Fund of the Federal Joint Committee G-BA.

Myocardial infarction and chronic narrowing of the coronary arteries (coronary heart disease - cchd for short) are the most frequent causes of death in Germany. Treatment options include the dilatation of the coronary arteries by means of a stent via catheter or a bypass operation with an open chest in which the narrowed vessel site is bridged. At present, a non-binding »National Care Guideline cchd« helps physicians to decide which treatment is best suited to the severity of vascular damage and possible concomitant diseases of the patient. Often, however, other factors are decisive in determining how treatment is given. Among other things, the equipment or preferences of the hospital or department in which the patient is admitted play a role in the decision.

The aim of the project REVASK is to investigate whether and to what extent the cooperation of cardiology and heart surgery specialists in so-called heart teams influences the decision on therapy. Do the physicians tend to follow the guidelines when they make decisions together as a team?

Claims data of several health insurance companies (Techniker Krankenkasse, BARMER and the Betriebs- and Innungskrankenkasse) as well as treatment data, which are stored in registers of professional societies, are analysed in the project. In addition, doctors and patients are interviewed about how the treatment decision was made and how satisfied both sides are with the outcome of the treatment and the decision. If successful, the project will help to avoid overuse, underuse and misuse of the patients, as it will provide information on the importance of the heart team with regard to the therapy decision. In the future, this should increase compliance with the guideline and thus improve the treatment outcome.

Duration: 2019–2024
Project partners: BARMER | Deutsche Gesellschaft für Thorax-, Herz- und Gefäßchirurgie e.V. | Institute for Applied Health Research Berlin GmbH | University of Education Freiburg | University of Cologne, PMV research group | Foundation Institute for Heart Attack Research | Techniker Krankenkasse
Funding reference number: 01VSF18010
Methods: Statistical Analyses
Topics: Supply curves, Disease incidence, Population health
Data: Data linkage, Pseudonymisation, Claims data