Source: Litmus Health
Healthcare startups that function as contract research organizations to validate health tech for payers, health systems and pharmaceutical companies are an emerging trend. But one company that’s providing a different approach in this category is Litmus Health. The company uses data from wearables and other devices to support Phase 1 and Phase 2 clinical trials for pharmaceutical companies and other institutions.
This week, Litmus Health launched its public beta, according to a news release.
The advantage of the company’s approach is that wearables and other connected devices are already in the hands of consumers, said Litmus CEO Daphne Kis in the release.
“The challenge is to credibly accommodate the data they collect,” Kis said. “We have the opportunity to help researchers understand patients and their quality of life as we never have before, and the market is ready. These data are going to have huge implications for the healthcare ecosystem and for how we use patient data both in the clinical trials setting and beyond. In the not too distant future, the entire world will be one big clinical trial.”
A spokeswoman said in a brief phone interview that the platform is built to integrate any wearable and connected device. She added that the Austin, Texas-based company’s platform is also designed to integrate with ResearchKit.
Asked how she would contrast Litmus Health with say, Evidation Health, she said Litmus comes in at an earlier stage than Evidation Health.
A Deep-dive Into Specialty Pharma
A specialty drug is a class of prescription medications used to treat complex, chronic or rare medical conditions. Although this classification was originally intended to define the treatment of rare, also termed “orphan” diseases, affecting fewer than 200,000 people in the US, more recently, specialty drugs have emerged as the cornerstone of treatment for chronic and complex diseases such as cancer, autoimmune conditions, diabetes, hepatitis C, and HIV/AIDS.
The Litmus platform is currently being used in a pilot at the University of Chicago for a clinical trial to better understand the effects that activity, sleep, and diet have on Irritable Bowel Disorder patients.
The company’s chief science officer, Dr. Samuel Volchenboum, is also the director of the Center for Research Informatics at the University of Chicago. He said the company is responding to the need to provide a better way to collect data in clinical research.
“Smartphones, wearables, and home sensors present a unique opportunity,” he said. “Most researchers understand the value of patient-generated information collected at the point of experience, but they have no good way to harness those data. The ability to measure outcomes in multiple dimensions, remotely, is key. Litmus helps research teams and their sponsors make more confident go / no-go decisions.”
Litmus Health claims to use machine learning to align time-series data, according to the release, and to identify correlations between behavior, environment, and patient outcomes. Its dashboard shows data that highlights each study’s progress and population trends.
The company’s Litmus trial companion mobile app is available for iOS and Android networks.
