Background/Objectives: Leakage of stomal effluent adversely affects the quality of life for people living with a stoma and increases healthcare resource utilisation and costs. The Heylo™ digital leakage notification system (DLNS) detects early signs of leakage under the baseplate, enabling proactive stoma management. We evaluated the impact of the DLNS on stoma-related costs in a real-world UK setting. Methods: This costing analysis used data from the first 100 DLNS users with 6 months of follow-up in an ongoing longitudinal observational study (NCT06554015). Costs were calculated as 3-month totals before DLNS (baseline): Month 3, and Month 6 for stoma-related healthcare provider consultations, hospitalisations, and ostomy solution components (pouching systems, supporting products, and DLNS sensor layers). Least squares (LS) means were estimated using a mixed model. Results: Total LS mean costs for stoma-related consultations plus ostomy solution use decreased significantly from baseline by 21.9% at Month 3 (−£304 95% CI: −£456, −£153; p = 0.001) and 24.5% at Month 6 (−£340 95% CI: −£504, −£175; p < 0.001). Stoma-related consultation costs decreased by 50.7% at Month 3 (−£309 95% CI: −£447, 171; p < 0.001) and 57.9% at Month 6 (−£353 95% CI: −£493, −£213; p < 0.001), driven by fewer physician and stoma care nurse consultations. Mean ostomy solution costs remained similar from baseline (£784/person) to Month 6 (£782/person; p = 0.955) as DLNS sensor layer costs were offset by less use of other ostomy products. Conclusions: Initiation of the Heylo™ DLNS was associated with significant cost savings from reduced stoma-related consultations, pouching systems, and supporting product use.
Baxter et al. (Wed,) studied this question.