Methods
obesity, Obesity
OBESITY, OBESITY
A cost-utility analysis was conducted for a UK (England) population in line with the NICE reference case [The analysis considered the cost effectiveness of ESG alongside LM versus LM alone based on the MERIT RCT with the model population limited to patients with class II obesity (i.e., who could potentially be eligible for ESG per current international and UK guidelines). In this MERIT subgroup (The comparison of ESG with LM alone in the model is relevant as MERIT is the only RCT conducted to date that has evaluated the effectiveness and safety of ESG and represents the most robust source of clinical evidence on the procedure. In the model, LM reflected Tier 3 weight management services recommended in NICE clinical guidelines [Authors JK, VM, SA and BH provided expert clinical advice to validate the model structure, inputs/assumptions, and plausibility of the results. Given the technical modelling nature of the study, patient group input was not solicited during model development, though results were presented to Obesity UK.