While Digital Coaching Continues To Help Diabetes Patients Overall, Dropout Rate Increases In Year Two
The question of how long digital devices can help patients is one many digital startups want to answer. Results weren't as strong as Year One's of Virta's five-year study, but don't rush to judgement said Dr. Ethan Weiss, a cardiologist at the University of California, San Francisco. “They’re still doing really well,” he said. Other news on digital medicine looks at the creation of DiMe .
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Diabetes Patients See Gains With Digital Coaching, And Some Dropoff
Plenty of health-tech startups have been buoyed by early data suggesting that their coaching and monitoring tools are generating improvements in patients with chronic diseases. But a big question remains: Just how durable are those gains? New data from one such company, Virta Health, underscore a tricky challenge for the burgeoning field: Even when an intervention looks promising, the apparent benefits often erode over time. (Robbins, 6/5)
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DiMe: Calling All Who Serve In Digital Medicine
From smart pacemakers to diagnostic algorithms and digital therapeutics, medicine is becoming more digitized every year. Digital medicine tools offer the possibility of improved health outcomes, lower costs, and better access to care. But the evidence base for the safety and effectiveness of these new products has not kept pace with their development. Given the great divide between the promised benefits of digital medicine and its potential risks, we need to know — not just believe — that the tools we use are trustworthy. (Jen Goldsack, Beau Woods and Eric Perakslis, 6/5)
