More and more doctors are embracing the growing digital therapeutics trend. Increasing evidence is coming to light on a daily basis as to how effective digital therapeutics is now. This is driving a huge growth in apps that provide personalised therapy, catering to a wide variety of medical conditions that range from diabetes to mental health.
Numerous analysts have stated that traditional therapeutics has reached an impasse and the new growth will come from digital therapeutics. This is being driven by ailing healthcare systems and millions of patients who could benefit from a user-centred digital therapy. Digital therapy comes with a series of undeniable advantages: it is adaptable, low cost, can be implemented rapidly and globally, and offers invaluable recorded data on its effectiveness.
Tests show that some digital products are now triggering the same level of dopamine release as land-based casino games. App developers and entrepreneurs, trained in developing gaming apps, are now seizing the opportunity and reshaping the healthcare landscape. They are providing digital therapeutics solutions that are highly addictive and habit forming, but targeted towards health improvement and not your bank balance.
Does digital therapeutics work?
Various start-ups who work in the sector have provided clear evidence that digital therapeutics does have a positive impact on patients.
QuitGenius has developed an app that helps its users quit smoking. On average, studies have found only around 3% of smokers are able to quit smoking without external help. With this app, the success rate was of 36%. Only in the U.K., 16% of the registered deaths are caused by smoking. The use of this app at a large scale would take the burden off healthcare systems around the globe and, after all, off our collective health.
OurPath has developed a digital program that aims at treating diabetes. Studies show that the program helped participants lose 7.5kg, which is sufficient to put the disease into remission. According to the Royal College of Physicians, Type 2 diabetes is the “scourge of the 21st century”. Sadly, this condition is mostly caused by a deficient diet and an unhealthy lifestyle. Treating Type 2 diabetes costs NHS no less than 10% of its annual budget, roughly £12 billion a year.
Beats Medical Group disclosure which I am a Co-Founder has developed two digital apps: one for Parkinson and one for Dyspraxia. Global users can now rely on an innovative app that provides customised treatments that have been shown to improve dexterity, speech, and mobility. The daily metronome therapy is delivered to customers through iPhone and iPad. The Dyspraxia app helps children suffering from this condition improve their gross and fine motor skills by means of fun games and exercises. And the great news is that the treatment is available at a heavy discount by VHI Ireland, the largest Irish insurance company.
SilverCloud has focused its efforts on reducing stress in the working environment. The data collected behind the products they developed demonstrates a significant decrease of the stress levels as well as an increased productivity for both employers and employees. As a bonus, the burden on the public healthcare system is also reduced.
Ieso has also developed digital psychological therapies. Their test results have clearly demonstrated that standard face-to-face treatments – such as the cognitive behavioural therapy – are considerably more efficient when delivered in a digital format.
HelloSelf focuses on helping its users be their best selves. The company not only provides digital access to a wide range of therapists, but it is also working on an AI life coach that is able to help us improve our mental wellness and have a better understanding of what makes us happy.
Bold Health is developing digital therapeutics for IBS. No less than 800 million people suffer from this condition. And the sad news is that 60% of them will more than likely develop anxiety or depression. Treatments such as antidepressants or restricted diet are obsolete. And these are only some of the effective digital therapeutics solutions that are currently in use.
Digital Therapeutics: A pressing necessity?
Eroom’s law is the observation that drug discovery is becoming slower and more expensive over time, despite improvements in technology. Put simply, developing a market-ready drug may take up to 14 years. Despite the huge costs, approval process, and lengthy testing, nothing guarantees that the drug will produce the expected effects. Once on the market, very few pharmaceutical companies take the trouble to track the real effectiveness of the drugs they produce.
In comparison, digital therapeutics can be developed quickly and cheaply. They can also be rolled out globally at the click of a button. Digital therapeutics offers a series of conclusive benefits: easier data collection, increased evidence efficacy, enhanced treatment adaptability to the real needs of the population. Unlike traditional therapy methods, digital therapeutics is dynamic. Taking into account the feedback received from patients, software is continuously being updated and improved.
So far, digital therapeutics companies have sold their products directly to consumers. However, under the clear evidence that digital therapeutics do work, many healthcare systems are beginning to implement their use. For instance, NHS has launched an App Library that is meant to recommend trusted digital apps. The GP surgeries across the U.K. are currently beginning to work with the AppScript, a platform that allows them to find and prescribe the best available digital health apps. In Ireland, the largest health insurance company is providing reimbursement on the cost of the Beats Medical dyspraxia app. According to IQVIA, digital therapeutics will help the NHS save up to £170 million, with £131 million in Type 2 diabetes alone.
There is no doubt that national health systems could hugely benefit from this new treatment solution. By using the amount of valuable data on how their patients’ health changes over time, healthcare systems could easily develop their own digital therapeutics strategies, thus saving up on costs and redefining its inner workings to reap all the benefits the digital health concept has to offer.
