Metered Dose Inhaler with Wireless Connectivity to Track Medication Adherence

Medical device manufacturer, H&T Presspart, and medtech firm, Cohero Health have launched the first connected metered dose inhaler (eMDI) to track – and potentially improve – medication adherence in patients with asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). The medical device is integrated with Cohero’s BreatheSmart respiratory disease management platform, allowing healthcare providers to monitor both controller and rescue doses, in real-time.

Respiratory attacks are responsible for 3.25 million worldwide deaths each year, and medication adherence to controller inhalers are the best way to prevent these symptoms. According to H&T Presspart, less than 50 percent of patients take their medication as prescribed, leading to hospitalizations and preventable deaths.

The newly-developed eMDI medical device is similar in size and shape to currently-available inhalers, in order to help patients and pharmaceutical manufacturers adopt to the new technology. Sensors embedded in the device track when the medication was administered and transmit that information to the BreatheSmart app.

“We already have effective medicines for asthma and COPD,” said Dr. Caralee Caplan-Shaw, Assistant Professor and Co-Director of a New York City Pulmonary Clinic. “But we can only improve and save lives in the face of rising healthcare costs if we find new ways to ensure that patients get the right dose at the right time every time.”

Tracking the use of both controller and rescue medications could allow patients to improve self-care of their COPD or asthma symptoms, while allowing healthcare providers to ensure that the medication is used as prescribed. In addition, the eMDI medication adherence data can be combined with lung function data collected using Cohero Health’s mSpirometer, to allow physicians to determine the effects of inhaler medications on lung function, in real-time.

“In designing the eMDI, our mission was to help pharmaceutical companies bring the best possible care to patients in an intuitive device in the fastest time and most cost-efficient way,” said Peter Schmelzer, CEO of H&T Presspart. “We have thus combined the design of the world’s most widely used and established inhaler technology with the only respiratory platform that gives a complete and objective picture of how a patient is responding to treatment between reviews,” said Mellissa Manice, Co-Founder and CEO of Cohero Health.