The expanding field of digital treatment, such as diabetes treatment and symptom management for depression
The history of digital treatment is as follows. It starts with the acquisition of FDA approval. Based on the blood sugar level data that diabetes patients measure daily and enter into the app, the app provides guidance on diet and exercise therapy, lifestyle advice, and information such as the appropriate amount of insulin to inject. Consultation is also possible.
Since then, the development of digital treatments has been active around the world, especially in the United States. Israel's SIVAN Innovation received the first insurance reimbursement for digital treatment in France with its app "MoovCare" for early detection of recurrences and complications in lung cancer patients. Once a week, patients complete a simple questionnaire about their symptoms (loss of appetite, dyspnea, etc.) and notify their doctors if they have any problems. Its effectiveness has been confirmed.
In addition, various types of digital treatments have appeared, such as the app "Deprexis" (GAIA) that manages the symptoms of mild to severe depression, and the insomnia improvement app "Sleepio" (Big Health). are doing. As a familiar example, the electrocardiogram app installed on the Apple Watch has also obtained FDA approval, and in 2020, it obtained medical device approval in Japan. Development costs for digital treatments are lower than those for pharmaceuticals, etc., and it will help curb the growth of medical expenses. In addition to related companies, the number of startups and major IT companies entering the market is also increasing.
CureApp, a startup that develops treatment apps, is probably what sparked the rise of digital therapy in Japan. In August 2020, the company obtained regulatory approval for “CureApp SC and CO Checker,” a treatment application for nicotine addiction, which is the first disease treatment application in Japan, and was covered by insurance in December of the same year. We are also developing treatment apps for hypertension, NASH (non-alcoholic steatohepatitis), alcoholism, and cancer patient support. In December 2021, we started developing a chronic heart failure treatment app. It consists of three applications for patients, doctors, and supporters (family members and nursing staff), and provides online optimized exercise programs and disease management based on individual patient information. It is also equipped with an unsupervised at-home exercise monitoring system that utilizes IoT.
"CureApp SC and CO Checker", a treatment app for nicotine addiction developed by CureApp
In November 2020, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare compiled the "Package Strategy to Promote the Practical Use of Programmed Medical Devices (DASH for SaMD)" in order to keep pace with overseas developments, and the approval review system and approval review system based on the characteristics of programmed medical devices. are working to strengthen In order to develop and disseminate digital treatment, it is necessary to establish a mechanism for linking and aggregating medical data, as well as pharmaceutical approval and insurance coverage suitable for digital treatment.
Digital therapy using VR is also available
In November 2021, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released the VR program "EaseVRx" developed by Applied VR. , approved as a prescription treatment for chronic low back pain. EaseVRx is an 8-week treatment program using a VR headset and controller that can be performed at home to help alleviate back pain in everyday life.
Chronic back pain treatment VR program "EaseVRx" received FDA approval in November 2021
The program consists of 56 2- to 16-minute VR sessions based on cognitive behavioral therapy, with pain management training content such as diaphragmatic breathing training, mindfulness exercises, relaxation, and executive function games. Clinical studies have demonstrated improvements in pain, sleep and stress. It is expected to be commercialized in the middle of 2022.
Although it is not a digital treatment, mediVR, which is represented by doctor Masahiko Hara in Japan, has been selling rehabilitation medical equipment "mediVR Kagura" since March 2019. By repeating the action of reaching for an object displayed in the VR space (reaching action) in the game, rehabilitation patients can grasp the tricks of posture balance and center of gravity movement. is being introduced. Rehabilitation instructions and evaluations, which tended to be ambiguous in the real space, can be quantitatively based on numerical values in the VR space, so AI can analyze the progress of rehabilitation for each patient and personalize the rehabilitation content. It is said that
mediVR Kagura, a medical device for rehabilitation using VR
"Healthcare gamification", which increases the motivation of patients and encourages behavioral changes by adding game elements to healthcare products, is used in areas such as fitness management, medical training, medication management, and physical therapy. Applications are expanding, and the global market is expected to grow at an annual rate of about 14.8% from 2021 to 2027 (Report Ocean / Global Healthcare Gamification Market Size). The development of digital treatments that use VR to increase immersion and improve continuity by using gamification is likely to become one of the trends in the future.