See and Hear Again... Changing the Paradigm of Medicine

[DTx Era①] Currently Mainly Used for Mental Illness Treatment
Expanding to Disease Diagnosis Technology in the Future

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwanju Lee] The core principle of digital therapeutics (DTx), whether developed or under development, lies in treating specific diseases through digital stimuli such as images and sounds. These digital stimuli change patients' behaviors or lifestyles and also play a role in collecting and analyzing the resulting data. Audiovisual stimuli related to specific situations lead to alleviation of patients' conditions. In one animal experiment, the use of music was found to alleviate epilepsy, hypertension, anxiety, and regulate gene expression.

According to this mechanism of action, DTx is currently mainly used in fields related to behavioral or habit changes, such as mental illnesses and chronic diseases. The first DTx approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Pear Therapeutics' “reSET,” was also applied to patients with drug addictions such as narcotics and alcohol.

DTx shares similarities with general software or digital healthcare in that it utilizes mobile applications (apps), virtual reality (VR), chatbots, and artificial intelligence (AI). However, the biggest difference is that it must be based on “scientific evidence.” General digital healthcare typically provides information related to diet and exercise for simple health management and does not target specific diseases, making the development process relatively easier. In contrast, DTx must undergo randomized controlled clinical trials to prove therapeutic effects, following a process similar to pharmaceuticals in terms of clinical trials and approval.

Treatment programs also require sophisticated design. From the development stage, the latest sciences including medicine, artificial intelligence, and algorithms are comprehensively integrated. EndeavorRX by Akili Interactive, which in June 2020 became the world’s first FDA-approved DTx for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), applies technology that can stimulate the frontal-parietal regions of the brain related to attention, concentration, and multitasking, along with an adaptive algorithm that adjusts difficulty and treatment methods tailored to individuals. EndeavorRX, which treats ADHD through gameplay, demonstrated actual effectiveness through five clinical studies. The most representative study was a randomized controlled trial involving 348 children aged 8 to 12 with ADHD; after using the program five times a week for 25 minutes a day over four weeks, 36% of participants showed improvement in attention variable test scores. This study was published in the world-renowned medical journal “The Lancet” and served as a key basis for FDA approval.

Recently, DTx has advanced beyond merely treating diseases to developing “digital biomarkers” that also diagnose illnesses. Similar to how hospitals perform blood tests or X-rays to confirm the presence of diseases, advanced testing techniques are applied to assess patients’ current conditions and risks of specific diseases, enabling the prescription of appropriate DTx. Well-known domestic startups include Hi, which developed the emotional disorder digital biomarker “Ma-eum Geomjin” and the cognitive disorder digital biomarker “Alzguard,” as well as Welt and AimMed, which are developing insomnia DTx and digital biomarkers.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.