Open AccessThe digital pill
Author(s) -
Steven Wong,
Victor Chan
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
uwomj/medical journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2560-8274
pISSN - 0042-0336
DOI - 10.5206/uwomj.v85i1.4233
Subject(s) - pill , medicine , modalities , medical prescription , internet privacy , compliance (psychology) , food and drug administration , psychiatry , intensive care medicine , medical emergency , pharmacology , psychology , computer science , social science , sociology , social psychology
Compliance with prescription medication regimens is poor in patients who suffer from chronic conditions as well as from diseases that affect public health. It is thought that improving medication adherence can have a profound effect on patient health, though medication compliance remains a problem despite the availability of many modalities. Recently, digitalizing medication adherence was made possible by Proteus Digital Health, Inc using an ingestible sensor that emits an electric field upon digestion. This signal is detected by an externally worn adhesive monitor, which records the time at which the signal is received, along with other biometric markers such as heart rate. This system is currently under United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) review for use in a combination pill that also contains aripiprazole, a partial dopamine agonist used for the treatment of certain serious psychiatric conditions. Digitalizing medication adherence can have tremendous applications in all fields of medicine, though issues of drug costs, patient privacy, and patient autonomy may need to be addressed.