Smart Pill Can Tell Doctor If Patient Is Taking Medication
BOSTON (CBS) - It may sound like science fiction or perhaps more like Big Brother -- a medication that can tell your doctor whether you've swallowed it or not.
Many patients take a drug called Abilify to treat schizophrenia, bipolar disorder or depression, but soon patients may be offered a high-tech version of Abilify, a "smart pill".
It looks like a regular pill but hidden inside is a sensor which when swallowed sends a signal to a patch on a patient's arm that transmits a message to the patient's mobile phone verifying that the medication was taken.
The data can also be sent to the patient's doctor, even to family members who may be concerned a patient isn't taking his meds.
"Having a system like this for me to say ah, it's the compliance, so I don't have to add a medication or increase a dose, I have to get them to take the medicine," says Dr. David Henderson, a psychiatrist at Massachusetts General Hospital.
"I have a real problem with this technology focusing on a mental health drug first," says Lucinda Jewell, the immediate past-President of the Depression Bipolar Support Alliance. She was diagnosed with bipolar disorder in her early 30s after a manic episode when she experienced rapid speech, insomnia, and spiritual visions.
Jewell is concerned that using a mental health drug to introduce this new technology sends the wrong message. "It's further stigmatizing people with mental health conditions that they can't be accountable for their health and well-being," explains Jewell.
She says 50% of people, in general, don't take their medications as prescribed like antibiotics and blood pressure drugs.
"Let's try it on something that affects everyone first see how it goes with the civil liberties issues, the adherence issues, the hack-ability issues," Jewell says.
Psychiatrists agree that the Abilify smart pill isn't for everyone. "They have to be able to understand what this is and what the technology means," says Dr. Henderson.
The Abilify smart pill is being considered by the FDA and is not available yet. It is unclear how much it would cost and whether insurance companies would pay for it.
