SmartTouch for AstraZeneca’s Symbicort inhaler
New Zealand device developer Adherium has secured FDA clearance for over the counter sales of its SmartTouch sensor geared for use with Astra Zeneca’s drug Symbicort for asthma and COPD patients. The regulator’s green light will enable Adherium to push sales through the company’s website and other channels in the U.S. market from its U.S. headquarters in San Mateo, California, said CEO Arik Anderson in a phone interview.
Adherium previously received FDA clearance for an updated version of its inhaler sensor in September last year.
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The sensor attaches to the user’s inhaler and tracks their daily usage. The company’s sensor records the date and time the device was used and automatically transmits this information to an app on the patient’s phone or tablet. The SmartTouch also archives patient medication usage patterns, so doctors can review the information and make more informed decisions. The aim is to give physician feedback on how patients interact with the inhaler so physicians’ communication with patients is more meaningful.
“We want to bring patients closer to pharmacists,” Anderson said. “Offering this product over-the-counter has the potential to increase adherence, which would increase purchases at drugstores/retailers since people would be coming in more frequently for refills on their prescriptions.”
He noted that the company’s marketing pitch will focus on mothers of children with asthma. If adherence to asthma medication improves, so could school attendance.
“We created this company because we wanted to help children and adults with asthma gain better control over their disease, not the other way around.”
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Looking ahead, Anderson said that the company is in talks with payers to conduct a series of pilots later this year. Depending on the outcome, they could lead to an expansion of Adherium’s customer base.
SmartTouch for Symbicort
