Study Proves Alpha-Stim Treatment is As Effective and More Cost Efficient Than Current First-Line Therapy
The National Health Services (NHS) of the United Kingdom has released a new study on the clinical and cost effectiveness of Alpha-Stim®, a non-drug medical device designed for easy, at-home use. The study, which was published in the Journal of Affective Disorders, included 161 volunteers suffering from Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD), who had experienced unsatisfactory relief with other therapies.
The Sunday Times reports that “half of patients went into remission after treating themselves with the battery-operated device. Researchers say it has the potential to revolutionize mental healthcare and could save the health service millions of pounds.”
While the effectiveness of Alpha-Stim has been proven by over 100 research studies in the United States, the NHS sought to examine not only the clinical effectiveness of the device, but the cost effectiveness of using it in the British single payor healthcare system. Alpha-Stim proved to be a cost-effective choice with a savings of £540 ($680) per patient, compared to other available treatments.
According to Dr. Richard Morriss, principal investigator of the study and Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Nottingham, this could take a huge burden off the workload for Improving Access to Psychological Treatment (IAPT) services in England which sees GAD as 1 of 2 common problems with 4.4% of the British population affected.
“Alpha-Stim CES was more effective at achieving remission than we expected. As well as improvements in anxiety, there were improvements in depression and insomnia,” said Dr. Morriss in The Sunday Times.
Given that 25% of the European population suffers from depression or anxiety, and universal services such as mental health are largely funded by taxes in the European healthcare systems, savings of over £540 per patient is a tremendous win.
Results achieved with Alpha-Stim in the NHS study prove that this neuromodulation treatment is a valuable alternative or a complement to the psychological treatment.
An article in Woman and Home highlighted that the Alpha-Stim “could well be a useful alternative to treatment, for people looking for a different option – or those unhappy with the long NHS wait times that often come with anxiety treatments. Patients waiting for CBT can often wait upwards of eight weeks. A speedier, at-home option would likely be welcomed.”
In the wake of this groundbreaking research, Sky News profiled Steve Hutchinson, a father of four, who suffered from anxiety, insomnia, and depression until he discovered Alpha-Stim. “The change has been unbelievable in terms of my quality of life. It’s allowed me to do stuff that perhaps I would have struggled to do otherwise.” While Hutchinson was not a participant in the study, his results are in line with those discovered through the research.
In a companion article in The Sunday Times, a victim of violent sexual assault says, “After using the Alpha-Stim device, I am no longer jumping at every shadow and sound.” She reveals how after being traumatized for 16 years, she is at last finding some relief.
*FDA cleared for anxiety, insomnia and pain only, with approval for depression outside of the United States.
