The introduction of new healthcare technologies requires an appropriate discourse between clinicians who identify problems to be overcome and industrial partners who provide potential solutions. New products go through a tight regulatory process before they can be widely used. Although this process is somewhat different for medical devices than for drugs, the principles are the same: demonstration of proof of principle and safety, and identification of patients most likely to benefit. However, their use nowadays depends as much on a demonstration of cost effectiveness as on clinical effectiveness. Cost-effectiveness analysis requires quantification of both clinical effect and overall costs of different treatments.
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