Cost-effectiveness of AI in medicine from a clinical, technical, and economic perspective: A scoping review and a framework of analysis (Preprint)

BACKGROUND Research and Development (R&D) of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in medicine involve clinical, technical and economic aspects. Better understanding the relationship between these dimensions seems necessary to coordinate efforts of R&D among stakeholders. OBJECTIVE To assess systematically existing literature on the cost-effectiveness of Artificial Intelligence (AI) from a clinical, technical and economic perspective. METHODS A systematic literature review was conducted to study the cost-effectiveness of AI solutions and summarised within a scoping framework of health policy analysis developed to study clinical, technical and economic dimensions. RESULTS Of the 4820 eligible studies, 13 met the inclusion criteria. Internal medicine and emergency medicine were the most studied clinical disciplines. Technical R&D aspects have not been uniformly disclosed in the studies we analysed. Monetisation aspects such as payment models assumed have not been reported in the majority of cases. CONCLUSIONS Existing scientific literature on the cost-effectiveness of AI currently does not allow to draw conclusive recommendations. Further research and improved reporting on technical and economic aspects seem necessary to assess potential use-cases of this technology, as well as to secure reproducibility of results. CLINICALTRIAL Not applicable