A small revolution is underway in the drug market. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the American health agency, has just authorized the first electronic tablet. Understand: the first drug capable of being digitally tracked throughout the body. The purpose of these drugs connected? Allow the follow-up of a drug treatment by being able to determine if the tablet has been takenand the time (time and date) of this take.
The pill that has just been approved by US health authorities currently only concerns patients treated for schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and manic episodes. The connected tablet bears the name Abilify MyCite aripiprazole is composed of a sensor which, once ingested, ensures the traceability of the drug. How? ‘Or’ What ? The sensor activates when it comes into contact with stomach fluids. The electronic signal is then sent to a receiver present on a patch stuck on the patient’s chest. This then records the information on a user’s smartphone application. The device also offers the possibility for doctors to access patient information with their consent.
A perfectible but useful system
The system does not operate in real time as it may take 30 minutes to two hours for the drug to be detected. Still perfectible, this connected tracking treatment is nevertheless a breakthrough that could benefit some patients. “Being able to track the intake of medications prescribed for mental illness may be helpful for some patients “, confirms Mitchell Mathis, director of the psychiatric treatment division at the FDA’s Center for Drug Research and Evaluation, cited by the BBC.
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