Digital health company, etectRx, Inc., has announced the launch of a study to monitor antiretroviral therapy adherence among prescription opioid users living with HIV. The study, dubbed “MyTPill,” will assess patient adherence using two electronic adherence tracking technologies: the ID-Cap™ System from etectRx and an electronic pill box. The study will provide insight on how digital pill systems can help patients who have significant health risks due to nonadherence.
The MyTPill Study, which marks etectRx’s third NIH-sponsored study at Brigham and Women’s Hospital within the last two years, kicked off in March, and will include 80 patients over the next four years. Patients will track their use of HIV medication by using the ID-Cap System for three months and an electronic pill box for three months, with a short break in between. The research sites include leaders in HIV care at Fenway Health in Boston and at the University of Miami/Jackson Memorial HIV Clinic in Miami.
Despite the widespread availability of antiretroviral medications for persons living with HIV in the United States, adherence remains suboptimal, especially among individuals taking opioids. This study gives etectRx and the clinical research team the ability to demonstrate the performance of digital health solutions in helping patients remain adherent to their medication.
The ID-Cap System consists of a hard gelatin capsule with an embedded sensor, which sends a digital message from within the patient after it is ingested to a wearable reader. When used correctly, the system successfully recorded medication ingestions on 98 percent of occasions in a recent study and has recorded over 6,000 ingestions across 15 IRB-approved clinical studies.
“Researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Fenway Health are using etectRx technology in studies to evaluate the value of digital pills to pharma” said Valerie Sullivan, CEO of etectRx. “At etectRx, we are committed to providing strong data that can make a difference in patients’ lives.”
With strong differences from former competitor Proteus Digital Health, etectRx is active during a time when the market is primed for accelerating digital health solutions.
etectRx is a digital health company. The FDA-cleared ID-Cap System uniquely addresses the issue with patient adherence to (oral) medication. The accurate, flexible and elegant digital pill system allows pharmaceutical companies to rethink approaches to medication adherence, innovate with confidence, and accelerate patient outcomes. To learn more, visit https://etectrx.com/.
The NIH-sponsored clinical study described in this press release is supported by the National Institute of Drug Abuse (NIDA) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) under Award Number R01DA047236. The content of this press release is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.
