Apple launched ResearchKit in March, and within months drug developers had begun to explore its possibilities. Purdue Pharma in Cranbury, New Jersey, known for producing analgesics, created a prototype Apple Watch and iPhone application that could be used to track pain levels and drug efficacy in patients, says Chief Information Officer Larry Pickett. In addition, he notes, vibrating feedback from the watch could boost patient compliance in taking medications in a timely fashion. Indeed, on September 10, the US Food and Drug Administration cleared the first ingestible sensor for tracking patient compliance. The tablet, produced by Proteus Digital Health of Redwood City, California, combines Otsuka's Abilify (aripiprazole) schizophrenia drug with Proteus' sensors that can digitally record ingestion and send information to caregivers and healthcare professionals' smart devices.
But Apple built its ResearchKit as a medical research tool. The idea behind this open source software is for scientists and drug developers to shape it to their own particular needs, whether for collecting clinical research data, or patient recruitment or gathering informed consent. ResearchKit can gather activity data, for instance, from individuals asked to perform app-based tests on an iPhone or Apple Watch. Or the wearable mobile devices can gather data as passive monitors, tracking heart rate or temperature, for example.
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