Washington, US, November 13 — The US administration for food and drugs (FDA) approves usage of a digital pill that is able to track if patients have ingested their medication. The Abilify MyCite (aripiprazole tablets with sensor) capsule can be swallowed and will then send data to the cloud.
Who built this?
This solution has been developed by the Japanese company Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co (OPC). Otsuka was founded in 1964, and while they have offices around the world, they have their headquarter in Tokyo, Japan. The product has now been approved in the US for use to treat cases of schizophrenia, manic/mixed episodes in combination with bipolar I disorder and also be used in the treatment of depression in adults. Maybe that spectrum will expand in the future, if it makes sense.
How does that work?
The newly gained ability is focusing on the treatment of patients with mental illnesses. There are no indications that this will become a generally provided solution and there are no clear indications of the potential costs of using the Abilify MyCite pill. Once the pill enters the body of the patient, it will send data to a wearable patch which collects the data for later analysis. The patch will compile the data into meaningful chunks and provide same to a mobile app, which is available also for caregivers and other medical staff involved in the treatment via a web portal. Of course it’s mission critical to make sure the patient data is handled in a responsible way.
Further insight
“Being able to track ingestion of medications prescribed for mental illness may be useful for some patients,” said Mitchell Mathis, M.D., director of the Division of Psychiatry Products in the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research. “The FDA supports the development and use of new technology in prescription drugs and is committed to working with companies to understand how technology might benefit patients and prescribers.”
YouTube: Abilify MyCite – Feds approve pill with digital tracking system (Fox News)
Photo credit: Joanne Quirante-Escober
Source: FDA / Matthew Perrone (AP/StarTribune)
Editorial notice: Images are not related to the product in this article. The quote was provided as part of a public announcement.
