Role of digital therapeutics and the changing future of healthcare

Abstract

With healthcare becoming digital, patients today are more empowered than ever before. As a result, digital health solutions have become the need of the hour to keep up with an increasing number of empowered patients participating in their own treatment decisions. Digital health encompasses various platforms and systems that apply technological solutions to enhance healthcare delivery. Digital therapeutics (DTx) is one such category of digital health solutions that provides evidence-based software-driven therapeutic interventions for the prevention and management of a medical disorder or disease. This review aims to provide a comprehensive overview of DTx, its functions and applications in healthcare, and associated regulatory aspects, among others.

From Precision Metapharmacology to Patient Empowerment: Delivery of Self-Care Practices for Epilepsy, Pain, Depression and Cancer Using Digital Health Technologies

“…An increasing number of studies show clinical benefits of mobile and web-based apps, or therapeutic video games, in people with diabetes, substance use, depression, anxiety, schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, chronic pain, epilepsy, cardiovascular diseases, and cancer ( Sverdlov et al, 2018 ; Chung, 2019 ; Sin et al, 2020 ). Clinical benefits and cost-effectiveness of digital interventions favor their implementation into health care ( Jiang et al, 2019 ; Nordyke et al, 2019 ; Dang et al, 2020 ; Richards et al, 2020 ).…”

“…While digital interventions are considered as non-invasive and relatively low-risk for patients, the safety of mobile medical apps has not been systemically studied. Implementation, adoption and scalability of digital therapeutics can vary from country to country, and depends on reimbursement policies ( Powell et al, 2019 ; Gordon et al, 2020 ) and support from patients and health care providers ( Sverdlov et al, 2018 ; AMCP Partnership Forum, 2020 ; Dang et al, 2020 ; Patel and Butte, 2020 ).…”

Pharmacoadherence: An Opportunity for Digital Health to Inform the Third Dimension of Pharmacotherapy for Diabetes

“…When an intervention that treats a disease or improves adherence to a prescribed medication is driven by software, then this treatment reflects an application of digital therapeutics. 34 Seven types of electronic telehealth communication tools without sensor input have been used to provide reminder messages intended to improve adherence to diabetes medications. These include:…”

“…When an intervention that treats a disease or improves adherence to a prescribed medication is driven by software, then this treatment reflects an application of digital therapeutics. 34…”

Digital therapeutics can improve medication adherence in diabetes

“…with great interest. [ 1 ] As pointed out in the article, DTx indeed has tremendous potential in the modern-day world, and the applications of DTx can include a large number of conditions, which predominantly include chronic diseases such as type 2 diabetes.…”