Bang & Olufsen Medicom and AstraZeneca enter agreement on new patient compliance monitoring device
The device will be used to measure patient compliance in clinical trials.
Copenhagen September 4, 2006. Bang & Olufsen Medicom, an innovative drug delivery device solutions provider for the pharmaceutical industry, has announced that it has entered into an agreement with AstraZeneca AB on the development of a new patient monitor that measures patient compliance. The companies have signed the agreement to develop an electronic device that will be used in clinical studies. The device will be designed to register if patients take their medication correctly – and thereby measure patient compliance. Details of the agreement are confidential.
In a survey conducted in the US in 2005, nearly two-thirds (64%) of patients who were prescribed regular medication reported that they have simply forgotten to take their medication, with 11 percent saying that this has happened "often" or "very often”[1]. This non-compliance is said to cost an estimated $30 billion (€24.9bn) annual cost to pharmaceutical companies[2] from prescriptions and repeat prescriptions that are never filled, there are also additional costs related to Healthcare providers, the government and society in general. Health-wise, non compliance has serious consequences for the patient themselves, including hospitalization and in some severe cases, death.
Bang & Olufsen Medicom designs and develops a range of drug delivery devices that aim to help the patients remember when to take and regularly track their medication regimes. The company makes tablet reminder devices that prompt the patient when to take their medication called “The Helping Hand TM”.
A key focus this year for the company is their novel easy-to-operate inhaler - “The Assist Actuated Inhaler TM” - which contains a built-in display showing the number of doses remaining in the canister and a prompt that reminds the user when to take their medication. Bang & Olufsen Medicom’s mission is to develop new devices that aim to increase both drug delivery effectiveness and patient compliance rates.
About Bang & Olufsen Medicom
Bang & Olufsen Medicom, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Bang & Olufsen group, is a leading expert in the design, development and supply of innovative drug delivery device solutions and sensor based technologies. The current product range includes; inhalers, tablet reminders and injection pens with a focus on patient compliance. Bang & Olufsen Medicom offers concept development, engineering and manufacturing services to clients with options to license its intellectual property. For more information you can visit: http://www.medicom.bang-olufsen.com
For more information you can contact: Treasa Devine, PR Manager, B&O Medicom +4561555961
[1] Harris Interactive/Wall Street Journal online survey, “Prescription Drug Compliance a Significant Challenge for Many Patients, According to New National Survey” March 2005 for The Wall Street Journal Online’s Health Industry Edition
[2] Datamonitor report, Addressing Patient Compliance - Targeted marketing driving a shift in focus from acquisition, August 2004