Smart Prescription Bottles
Verizon or AT&T?
Last time, I gave an overview of technologies that aim to improve patient compliance. In this article, we will be taking a closer look at startups that use smart prescription caps and bottles to help track and better compliance. The advantage to this approach is that it requires no modification to the drug itself and thus minimal side-effects to the patient.
Cap-focused Technologies
Vitality
First off is the GlowCap® technology from Vitality (acquired by NantHealth in 2011). With it’s built-in timer, the smart cap lights up and makes audible alerts when it is time to take a pill. If connected to a cellular network the cap can also send you reminder calls and text messages.
To track compliance, GlowCap® equates removal of the cap to taking a dose. This information can then be sent to Vitality where it is then relayed to your doctor and healthcare provider.
GlowCap’s main advantages are price and versatility. A patient can simply transfer their existing pills to GlowCap’s bottle (which is now available on Amazon), fill in dosage information, and start using the product immediately.
One disadvantage here is that patient’s can “fool” the system by simply opening the cap to stop the alarm but not actually taking a pill. Furthermore, perhaps a patient could want to open the container to check how many pill are left- an action that would incorrectly register as a taken dose.
CleverCap
One very similar product is CleverCap by Compliance Meds Technologies. The ‘lite’ version of CleverCap is functionally identical to GlowCap. An additional ‘pro’ version includes a dosing door to individually dispense pills at designated times. This door can also be locked during dosing windows to prevent accidental overdosing.
Like GlowCap, CleverCap Pro also has cellular capabilities that allow for direct communication of compliance data to healthcare providers.
Bottle-focused Technologies
AdhereTech
The New York based startup, AdhereTech developed a smart bottle and cap system that is also functionally very similar to GlowCap. Cap removal is registered as a taken dose; Adheretech’s bottle also has incorporated cellular connectivity.
There is one additional feature however. The AdhereTech bottle can measure the capacitance of the bottle to determine approximately how many pills are left. This is useful for both patients and pharmacies to know when to order a refill.
SMRxT
Like AdhereTech, SMRxT’s smart bottle can also determine how many pills are left. Instead of capacitance, however, SMRxT uses a micro-scale on the bottom of the prescription bottle to determine the weight of it’s contents. Reduction in weight is thus used to determine if a patient has taken a dose.
While this method is more accurate than AdhereTech’s capacitance measurements, it would require pre-calibration to account for different types of pills. An advantage is that SMRxT’s bottle can register when a patient takes more pills than directed (or overdosing) — something that the cap-open tracking method cannot do.
The bottom line
All of these technologies are quite similar barring miniscule differences like how each dose is tracked or which cellular provider they use. Personally, I think the key attributes here are cost and simplicity. Chronic prescription users tend to be older in age and for them, the best technology is simple technology. No fancy smartphone apps or bluetooth pairing- just a direct cellular connection to your doctor or pharmacist. Along this line, I believe that all four of these startups are on the right track to compete in this emerging market.
