By Jagriti Arora
In November 2017, the Food and Drug Association of the United States approved the first pill with a digital sensor. ‘Abilify MyCite’ used to treat schizophrenia, bipolar disorder episodes, and depression comes with a sensor that digitally tracks whether patients have ingested their medication.
The pill is particularly useful for people with faulty memories and hence likely to reduce bills incurred by non-adherence to prescription. According to research, non-compliance to medication costs about $100 billion every year as patients continue to fall sicker and need more money to cover hospitalization costs. The digital pill is touted to have the potential to improve public health, said Ameet Sarpatwari, an expert from Harvard Medical School in an interview with the New York Times.
Co-founder of Proteus Biomedical, the company that developed the technology, George Savage says that the companys drive is to address medical problems that stem from drug non-compliance. Savage adds that about 40% of hospital readmissions for heart failure happen because patients often fail to stick to taking their prescribed medications properly.
Each pill contains an ingestible event marker (IEM) a microchip with a thin-film battery that gets activated once ingested. Once swallowed, the non-toxic IEM sends a high-frequency electrical current through the bodys tissues.
However, certain experts have questioned the ethical ambiguity of the pill, given its ‘Big Brother’ like tendency. Patients who agree to take the medication can sign consent forms permitting up to four people including family members, along with their doctors, to get electronic data showing the date and time pills are taken.
Over the years Proteus has raised about $400 million from investors, including Novartis and Medtronic and brought its sensor to commercial use.
AiCure, a smartphone-based visual recognition system, that aims to “optimize patient behaviour and medication adherence,” has reported progress with tuberculosis patients. Similarly, Etect Rx, a company from Florida, has been working on yet another ingestible sensor, the ID-Cap, which is being put to test with opioids and H.I.V. medication. Etect Rx aims to fit readers into watchbands or cellphone cases, with a receiver worn around the neck. With so much investment into digital pills and technologies surrounding the, while ethically questionable to some, digital medications seem to be the future of public healthcare.