Digital Therapeutics: Emerging New Therapy for Neurologic Deficits after Stroke

Development and Feasibility Assessment of Mobile Application-Based Digital Therapeutics for Postoperative Supportive Care in Gastric Cancer Patients Following Gastrectomy

PURPOSE

This study aimed to develop and assess the feasibility and effectiveness of digital therapeutics for supportive care after gastrectomy.

MATERIALS AND METHOD

The study included 39 patients with gastric cancer who underwent minimally invasive gastrectomy and were able to use a mobile application (app) on their smartphones. The developed research app automatically calculates and provides daily targets for calorie and protein intake based on the patient's body mass index (BMI). Patients recorded their daily diets, weights, and symptoms in the app and completed special questionnaires to assess the feasibility of the app in real-world clinical practice.

RESULTS

At the 10-week follow-up, the mean questionnaire scores for ease of learning, usability, and effectiveness of the app (primary endpoint) were 2.32±0.41, 2.35±0.43, and 2.4±0.39 (range: 0-3), respectively. Patients were classified as underweight (<18.5, n=4), normal (18.5-24.9, n=24), or overweight (≥25.0, n=11) according to predischarge BMI. Underweight patients showed higher compliance with app usage and a higher rate of achieving the target calorie and protein intake than normal weight and overweight patients (98% vs. 77% vs. 81%, p=0.0313; 102% vs. 75% vs. 61%, P=0.0111; 106% vs. 79% vs. 64%, P=0.0429). Two patients transitioned from underweight to normal weight (50.0%), one patient (4.3%) transitioned from normal weight to underweight, and two patients (22.2%) transitioned from overweight to normal weight.

CONCLUSIONS

The mobile app is feasible and useful for postoperative supportive care in terms of ease of learning, usability, and effectiveness. Digital therapeutics may be an effective way to provide supportive care for postgastrectomy patients, particularly in terms of nutrition.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT04800991.

A comprehensive survey of the clinical trial Landscape on digital therapeutics

Background

Digital therapeutics (DTx) is an emerging and groundbreaking medical intervention that utilizes health software to treat or alleviate various diseases, disorders, conditions, or injuries. Although the potential of digital therapy is enormous, it is still in its nascent stage and faces multiple challenges and obstacles. The purpose of this study is to provide an overview of all DTx-related clinical trials in ClinicalTrials.gov and to promote the advancement of DTx.

Methods

Two reviewers and one expert evaluated data from all DTx clinical trials on ClinicalTrials.gov as of August 8, 2023. Trials utilizing digital therapeutics independently or in combination with traditional approaches were included. Incomplete trials and those lacking an evidence-based foundation were excluded. Basic information about product launches and primary outcome measures was extracted and analyzed.

Results

A total of 280 eligible trials were categorized into treating a disease (141, 50.4 %), managing a disease (120, 42.9 %), and improving a health function (19, 6.8 %). The focus was primarily on mental and behavioral disorders, neurological disorders, and endocrine, nutritional, and metabolic disorders. The number of trials has been increasing annually, yet trial design and conduct remain inconsistent. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) accounted for 67.5 % of completed trials, and 36 trials (12.9 %) involved products already approved for marketing.

Conclusions

The growth in clinical studies on DTx underscores their potential in healthcare. However, challenges persist in standardization, regulation, and clinical efficacy. There is a need for a harmonized global classification of digital therapeutics and standardized clinical trial protocols to ensure efficacy and improve healthcare services.

Electroacupuncture modulates abnormal brain connectivity after ischemia reperfusion injury in rats: A graph theory-based approach

BACKGROUND

Electroacupuncture (EA) has been shown to facilitate brain plasticity-related functional recovery following ischemic stroke. The functional magnetic resonance imaging technique can be used to determine the range and mode of brain activation. After stroke, EA has been shown to alter brain connectivity, whereas EA's effect on brain network topology properties remains unclear. An evaluation of EA's effects on global and nodal topological properties in rats with ischemia reperfusion was conducted in this study.

METHODS AND RESULTS

There were three groups of adult male Sprague-Dawley rats: sham-operated group (sham group), middle cerebral artery occlusion/reperfusion (MCAO/R) group, and MCAO/R plus EA (MCAO/R + EA) group. The differences in global and nodal topological properties, including shortest path length, global efficiency, local efficiency, small-worldness index, betweenness centrality (BC), and degree centrality (DC) were estimated. Graphical network analyses revealed that, as compared with the sham group, the MCAO/R group demonstrated a decrease in BC value in the right ventral hippocampus and increased BC in the right substantia nigra, accompanied by increased DC in the left nucleus accumbens shell (AcbSh). The BC was increased in the right hippocampus ventral and decreased in the right substantia nigra after EA intervention, and MCAO/R + EA resulted in a decreased DC in left AcbSh compared to MCAO/R.

CONCLUSION

The results of this study provide a potential basis for EA to promote cognitive and motor function recovery after ischemic stroke.

Meta-Analysis of Studies on the Effects of Digital Therapeutics

Digital therapeutics (DTx), novel treatment methods that have the potential to surpass traditional approaches such as pills, have received considerable research attention. Various efforts have been made to explore effective treatment methods that actively integrate DTx. This review investigates DTx treatment outcomes comprehensively through a meta-analysis. The analysis-a manual search of studies on "digital therapeutics"-includes DTx studies from January 2017 to October 2022. Hedges' g is used to quantify effect size for fifteen studies analyzed, encompassing eight control groups. Further, a quality assessment is performed using the Bias Risk Assessment Tool. The Hedges' g analysis results provide weighted average effect sizes across the eight control groups, revealing a substantial value of 0.91 (95% CI: 0.62 to 1.20); this signifies a moderate to large effect size. Further refinement, which excludes one study, yields an increased weighted average effect size of 1.13 (95% CI: 0.91 to 1.36). The quality assessment results consistently indicate a low risk of bias across studies. The meta-analysis results indicate that DTx can provide significant pivotal therapeutic impacts and offer a means to personalize treatment approaches and streamline the management of patients' treatment processes.

Embracing virtual reality in rehabilitation of post-stroke aphasia

About one-third of stroke survivors experience aphasia, i.e., language dysfunction caused by brain damage. Aphasia affects not only a person's ability to communicate, but it often leads to the inability to return to work, loss of close relationships, diminished quality of life, negative self-perception, and depression. Yet persons with aphasia are globally underserved due to limited access to resources, which limits their chance for recovery. Immersive virtual reality (VR) has the potential to solve this problem and deliver efficient, personalized treatments to millions of people worldwide who need access to rehabilitation services or more flexibility in treatment delivery. To reduce the global burden of stroke experts recommend taking bold, pragmatic actions across all four pillars of stroke quadrangle-surveillance, prevention, acute care, and rehabilitation. Embracing immersive VR-based rehabilitation of poststroke aphasia would be one step in that direction.

Exploring the potential of digital therapeutics: An assessment of progress and promise

Digital therapeutics (DTx), a burgeoning subset of digital health solutions, has garnered considerable attention in recent times. These cutting-edge therapeutic interventions employ diverse technologies, powered by software algorithms, to treat, manage, and prevent a wide array of diseases and disorders. Although DTx shows significant promise as an integral component of medical care, its widespread integration is still in the preliminary stages. This limited adoption can be largely attributed to the scarcity of comprehensive research that delves into DTx's scope, including its technological underpinnings, potential application areas, and challenges-namely, regulatory hurdles and modest physician uptake. This review aims to bridge this knowledge gap by offering an in-depth overview of DTx products' value to both patients and clinicians. It evaluates the current state of maturity of DTx applications driven by digital technologies and investigates the obstacles that developers and regulators encounter in the market introduction phase.

Digital Therapeutics as a New Therapeutic Modality: A Review from the Perspective of Clinical Pharmacology

The promise of transforming digital technologies into treatments is what drives the development of digital therapeutics (DTx), generally known as software applications embedded within accessible technologies-such as smartphones-to treat, manage, or prevent a pathological condition. Whereas DTx solutions that successfully demonstrate effectiveness and safety could drastically improve the life of patients in multiple therapeutic areas, there is a general consensus that generating therapeutic evidence for DTx presents challenges and open questions. We believe there are three main areas where the application of clinical pharmacology principles from the drug development field could benefit DTx development: the characterization of the mechanism of action, the optimization of the intervention, and, finally, its dosing. We reviewed DTx studies to explore how the field is approaching these topics and to better characterize the challenges associated with them. This leads us to emphasize the role that the application of clinical pharmacology principles could play in the development of DTx and to advocate for a development approach that merges such principles from development of traditional therapeutics with important considerations from the highly attractive and fast-paced world of digital solutions.

Digital Therapeutics for the Egocentric and Allocentric Neglects in Patients with Brain Injury: A Mini Review

Various therapeutic approaches have been developed for neglect. Many studies have demonstrated the effect of digital therapeutics (DTx) on neglect. However, few studies have reported the effects of DTx on egocentric and allocentric neglect. The differentiation of types of neglect and separate interventions is crucial in the rehabilitation process. In this article, seven studies on DTx on egocentric and allocentric neglect were reviewed. DTx, which was employed in these studies, could be classified as follows: (1) software adaptation in traditional treatment, (2) VR game using the head-mount display as treatment, and (3) the development of a new digital program like ReMoVES. In addition, more studies and more effective results were reported for egocentric neglect than for allocentric neglect. In future studies, each effect on egocentric and allocentric neglect should be identified in detail with the appropriate use of differential evaluation and long-term application of independent DTx.

Machine Learning in Clinical Trials: A Primer with Applications to Neurology

We reviewed foundational concepts in artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) and discussed ways in which these methodologies may be employed to enhance progress in clinical trials and research, with particular attention to applications in the design, conduct, and interpretation of clinical trials for neurologic diseases. We discussed ways in which ML may help to accelerate the pace of subject recruitment, provide realistic simulation of medical interventions, and enhance remote trial administration via novel digital biomarkers and therapeutics. Lastly, we provide a brief overview of the technical, administrative, and regulatory challenges that must be addressed as ML achieves greater integration into clinical trial workflows.

Digital Therapeutics: Emerging New Therapy for Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease

The increased prevalence of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) worldwide is particularly worrisome, as no medication has been approved to treat the disease. Lifestyle modifications aimed at promoting weight loss and weight maintenance remain the current first-line treatment for NAFLD. However, due to the lack of standard and scientific guidance and out-of-hospital supervision, long-term outcomes of lifestyle interventions for patients with NAFLD are often unsatisfactory. In addition, the COVID-19 pandemic aggravated this dilemma. At the same time, digital therapeutics (DTx) are expected to be a new method for the convenient management and treatment of patients with NAFLD and are attracting a great deal of attention. DTx, which provide evidence-based medicine through software programs for remote intervention in preventing, treating, or managing diseases, overcome the drawbacks of traditional treatment. The efficacy of the approach has already been demonstrated for some chronic diseases, but DTx have not been fully developed for NAFLD. This study reviews the concepts, clinical value, and practical applications related to DTx, with an emphasis on recommendations based on unmet needs for NAFLD. A better understanding of the current state will help clinicians and researchers develop high-quality, standardized, and efficient DTx products, with the aim of optimizing the prognosis of patients with NAFLD.

Digital therapeutics from bench to bedside

As a new therapeutic technique based on digital technology, the commercialization and clinical application of digital therapeutics (DTx) are increasing, and the demand for expansion to new clinical fields is remarkably high. However, the use of DTx as a general medical component is still ambiguous, and this ambiguity may be owing to a lack of consensus on a definition, in addition to insufficiencies in research and development, clinical trials, standardization of regulatory frameworks, and technological maturity. In this study, we conduct an in-depth investigation and analysis of definitions, clinical trials, commercial products, and the regulatory status related to DTx using published literature, ClinicalTrials.gov, and web pages of regulatory and private organizations in several countries. Subsequently, we suggest the necessity and considerations for international agreements on the definition and characteristics of DTx, focusing on the commercialization characteristics. In addition, we discuss the status and considerations of clinical research, key technology factors, and the direction of regulatory developments. In conclusion, for the successful settlement of DTx, real-world evidence-based validation should be strengthened by establishing a cooperative system between researchers, manufacturers, and governments, and there should be effective technologies and regulatory systems for overcoming engagement barriers of DTx.

Digital Intervention For The Management Of Alzheimer's Disease

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a progressive, multifactorial, chronic, neurodegenerative disease with high prevalence and limited therapeutic options, making it a global health crisis. Being the most common cause of dementia, AD erodes the cognitive, functional, and social abilities of the individual and causes escalating medical and psychosocial needs. As yet, this disorder has no cure and current treatment options are palliative in nature. There is an urgent need for novel therapy to address this pressing challenge. Digital therapeutics (Dtx) is one such novel therapy that is gaining popularity globally. Dtx provides evidence based therapeutic interventions driven by internet and software, employing tools such as mobile devices, computers, videogames, apps, sensors, virtual reality aiding in the prevention, management, and treatment of ailments like neurological abnormalities and chronic diseases. Dtx acts as a supportive tool for the optimization of patient care, individualized treatment and improved health outcomes. Dtx uses visual, sound and other non-invasive approaches for instance-consistent therapy, reminiscence therapy, computerised cognitive training, semantic and phonological assistance devices, wearables and computer-assisted rehabilitation environment to find applications in Alzheimer's disease for improving memory, cognition, functional abilities and managing motor symptom. A few of the Dtx-based tools employed in AD include "Memory Matters", "AlzSense", "Alzheimer Assistant", "smart robotic dog", "Immersive virtual reality (iVR)" and the most current gamma stimulation. The purpose of this review is to summarize the current trends in digital health in AD and explore the benefits, challenges, and impediments of using Dtx as an adjunctive therapy for the management of AD.

Patient experience using digital therapy "Vigo" for stroke patient recovery: a qualitative descriptive study

BACKGROUND

The digital assistant "Vigo" is a computer-generated artificial intelligence-based application that serves as a digital assistant to a stroke patient and his family. With its conversational chatbot and gamification elements it counsels, educates, and trains the stroke patient and patient's family on stroke, rehabilitation, care, and other related issues.

AIM

This study describes insights about The digital assitant "Vigo" usability from a patients' perspective.

METHODS

Twelve patients tested the application at their home environment. Three semi-structured interviews were conducted with each participant to obtain information on the usability of the application. Deductive thematic analyses were used to analyze trancripts.

RESULTS

Participants expressed their opinions on music, pictures, video and audio files, chat options, layout, text, name of application and stand that is used for placement of devices on which "Vigo" is installed on. All participants generally evaluated application as transparent, understandable, and handy. The overall design of the application was rated as good. Participants were mostly unsatisfied with difficulty level and diversity of exercises.

CONCLUSIONS

Participants had a positive attitude towards using tablet tehchnologies in their home environment. Users of digital assistant "Vigo" acknowledged its ability to support, give educational information and increase participation in therapeutic activities.Implications for rehabilitationTablet application can support, give educational information, and increase participation in therapeutic activities for persons after stroke.As home-based rehabilitation tool, the content of the application must be simple, flexible, and diverse, to face the challenges of meeting each individual's goals, functional needs and abilities.

Disease-specific data processing: An intelligent digital platform for diabetes based on model prediction and data analysis utilizing big data technology

Background

Artificial intelligence technology has become a mainstream trend in the development of medical informatization. Because of the complex structure and a large amount of medical data generated in the current medical informatization process, big data technology to assist doctors in scientific research and analysis and obtain high-value information has become indispensable for medical and scientific research.

Methods

This study aims to discuss the architecture of diabetes intelligent digital platform by analyzing existing data mining methods and platform building experience in the medical field, using a large data platform building technology utilizing the Hadoop system, model prediction, and data processing analysis methods based on the principles of statistics and machine learning. We propose three major building mechanisms, namely the medical data integration and governance mechanism (DCM), data sharing and privacy protection mechanism (DPM), and medical application and medical research mechanism (MCM), to break down the barriers between traditional medical research and digital medical research. Additionally, we built an efficient and convenient intelligent diabetes model prediction and data analysis platform for clinical research.

Results

Research results from this platform are currently applied to medical research at Shanghai T Hospital. In terms of performance, the platform runs smoothly and is capable of handling massive amounts of medical data in real-time. In terms of functions, data acquisition, cleaning, and mining are all integrated into the system. Through a simple and intuitive interface operation, medical and scientific research data can be processed and analyzed conveniently and quickly.

Conclusions

The platform can serve as an auxiliary tool for medical personnel and promote the development of medical informatization and scientific research. Also, the platform may provide the opportunity to deliver evidence-based digital therapeutics and support digital healthcare services for future medicine.

Use of the digital assistant “Vigo” at home environment for stroke recovery: focus group discussion with specialists working in neurorehabilitation (Preprint)

BACKGROUND

There is a lack of resources for the provision of adequate rehabilitation after a stroke, thus creating a challenge to provide the necessary high-quality, patient-centered, and cost-efficient rehabilitation services at a time when they are needed the most. Tablet-based therapeutic programs present an alternative way to access rehabilitation services and show a new paradigm for providing therapeutic interventions following a stroke anytime and anywhere. The digital assistant Vigo is an artificial intelligence-based app that provides an opportunity for a new, more integrative way of carrying out a home-based rehabilitation program. Considering the complexity of the stroke recovery process, factors such as a suitable population, appropriate timing, setting, and the necessary patient-specialist support structure need to be thoroughly researched. There is a lack of qualitative research exploring the perspectives of professionals working in neurorehabilitation of the content and usability of the digital tool for the recovery of patients after a stroke.

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study is to identify the requirements for a tablet-based home rehabilitation program for stroke recovery from the perspective of a specialist working in stroke rehabilitation.

METHODS

The focus group study method was chosen to explore specialists' attitudes, experience, and expectations related to the use of the digital assistant Vigo as a home-based rehabilitation program for stroke recovery in domains of the app's functionality, compliance, usability, and content.

RESULTS

In total, 3 focus groups were conducted with a participant count of 5-6 per group and the duration of the discussion ranging from 70 to 80 minutes. In total, 17 health care professionals participated in the focus group discussions. The participants represented physiotherapists (n=7, 41.2%), occupational therapists (n=7, 41.2%), speech and language therapists (n=2, 11.8%), and physical medicine and rehabilitation physicians (n=1, 5.9%). Audio and video recordings of each discussion were created for further transcription and analysis. In total, 4 themes were identified: (1) the clinician's views on using Vigo as a home-based rehabilitation system, (2) patient-related circumstances facilitating and limiting the use of Vigo; (3) Vigo's functionality and use process (program creation, individual use, remote support); and (4) complementary and alternative Vigo use perspectives. The last 3 themes were divided further into 10 subthemes, and 2 subthemes had 2 sub-subthemes each.

CONCLUSIONS

Health care professionals expressed a positive attitude toward the usability of the Vigo app. It is important that the content and use of the app be coherent with the aim to avoid (1) misunderstanding its practical use and the need for integration in practice and (2) misusing the app. In all focus groups, the importance of close involvement of rehabilitation specialists in the process of app development and research was highlighted.

An mHealth App for Fibromyalgia-like Post-COVID-19 Syndrome: Protocol for the Analysis of User Experience and Clinical Data

Background

Post–COVID-19 syndrome, also referred as “long covid,” describes persisting symptoms after SARS-CoV-2 infection, including myalgia, fatigue, respiratory, or neurological symptoms. Objective symptoms are often lacking, thus resembling a fibromyalgia-like syndrome. Digital therapeutics have shown efficiency in similar chronic disorders such as fibromyalgia, offering specific disease monitoring and interventions such as cognitive behavioral therapy or physical and respiratory exercise guidance.

Objective

This protocol aims to study the requirements and features of a new mobile health (mHealth) app among patients with fibromyalgia-like post–COVID-19 syndrome in a clinical trial.

Methods

We created a web application prototype for the post–COVID-19 syndrome called “POCOS,” as a web-based rehabilitation tool aiming to improve clinical outcomes. Patients without organ damage or ongoing inflammation will be included in the study. App use will be assessed through user experience questionnaires, focus groups, and clinical data analysis. Subsequently, we will analyze cross-sectional and longitudinal clinical data.

Results

The developed mHealth app consists of a clinically adapted app interface with a simplified patient-reported outcome assessment, monitoring of medical interventions, and disease activity as well as web-based instructions for specific physical and respiratory exercises, stress reduction, and lifestyle instructions. The enrollment of participants is expected to be carried out in November 2021.

Conclusions

User experience plays an important role in digital therapeutics and needs to be clinically tested to allow further improvement. We here describe this process for a new app for the treatment of the fibromyalgia-like post–COVID-19 syndrome and discuss the relevance of the potential outcomes such as natural disease course and disease phenotypes.

International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID)

PRR1-10.2196/32193

Clinical Observation of Comfort Nursing Combined With Continuous Nursing Intervention After Discharge on Improving Pressure Ulcers, Falls, Quality of Life, and Prognosis in Patients With Intracerebral Hemorrhage

In this prospective study, we randomly divided 131 patients with intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) who met the inclusion criteria into two groups. One group received routine nursing during hospitalization, and the “Stroke Prevention Knowledge Manual” was issued before discharge, and was recorded as the control group (n = 61); one group received comfort nursing during hospitalization, and implemented continuous nursing after discharge, and was recorded as the research group (n = 70). The indicators we observed were the occurrence of pressure ulcers and falls during the hospitalization of the two groups of patients and the improvement in neurological function, limb function, quality of life, ability of daily living, and emotional state after the intervention. We also compared the disability degree of the two groups 6 months after discharge, the readmission status within 6 months of discharge, and the nursing satisfaction after the intervention. Our conclusion is that comfort nursing combined with continuous nursing intervention after discharge can effectively reduce the occurrence of pressure ulcers and falls during the nursing period of patients with ICH and contribute to the improvement of their quality of life and prognosis. It is worthy of clinical promotion.

Factors Influencing Perceived Helpfulness and Participation in Innovative Research: A Pilot Study of Individuals with and without Mood Symptoms

Little is known about how individuals with and without mood disorders perceive the inherent risks and helpfulness of participating in innovative psychiatric research, or about the factors that influence their willingness to participate. We conducted an online survey with 80 individuals (self-reported mood disorder [n = 25], self-reported good health [n = 55]) recruited via MTurk. We assessed respondents' perceptions of risk and helpfulness in study vignettes associated with two innovative research projects (intravenous ketamine therapy and wearable devices), as well as their willingness to participate in these projects. Respondents with and without mood disorders perceived risk similarly across projects. Respondents with no mood disorders viewed both projects as more helpful to society than to research volunteers, while respondents with mood disorders viewed the projects as equally helpful to volunteers and society. Individuals with mood disorders perceived ketamine research, and the two projects on average, as more helpful to research volunteers than did individuals without mood disorders. Our findings add to a limited empirical literature on the perspectives of volunteers in innovative psychiatric research.

Digital therapeutics in neurology

Digital therapeutics (DTx) is a section of digital health defined by the DTx Alliance as “delivering evidence-based therapeutic interventions to patients that are driven by software to prevent, manage, or treat a medical disorder or disease. They are used independently or in concert with medications, devices, or other therapies to optimize patient care and health outcomes”. Chronic disabling diseases could greatly benefit from DTx. In this narrative review, we provide an overview of DTx in the care of patients with neurological dysfunctions.

Adjunctive Approaches to Aphasia Rehabilitation: A Review on Efficacy and Safety

Aphasia is one of the most socially disabling post-stroke deficits. Although traditional therapies have been shown to induce adequate clinical improvement, aphasic symptoms often persist. Therefore, unconventional rehabilitation techniques which act as a substitute or as an adjunct to traditional approaches are urgently needed. The present review provides an overview of the efficacy and safety of the principal approaches which have been proposed over the last twenty years. First, we examined the effectiveness of the pharmacological approach, principally used as an adjunct to language therapy, reporting the mechanism of action of each single drug for the recovery of aphasia. Results are conflicting but promising. Secondly, we discussed the application of Virtual Reality (VR) which has been proven to be useful since it potentiates the ecological validity of the language therapy by using virtual contexts which simulate real-life everyday contexts. Finally, we focused on the use of Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS), both discussing its applications at the cortical level and highlighting a new perspective, which considers the possibility to extend the use of tDCS over the motor regions. Although the review reveals an extraordinary variability among the different studies, substantial agreement has been reached on some general principles, such as the necessity to consider tDCS only as an adjunct to traditional language therapy.

Apprehensions about Excessive Belief in Digital Therapeutics: Points of Concern Excluding Merits

Digital therapeutics (DTx), like drugs or medical devices, 1) must prove their effectiveness and safety through clinical trials; 2) are provided to patients through prescriptions from doctors; and 3) may require the approval of regulatory agencies, though this might not be mandatory. Although DTx will play an important role in the medical field in the near future, some merits of DTx have been exaggerated at this crucial juncture. In the medical field, where safety and effectiveness are important, merely reducing the development time and costs of DTx is not advantageous. The adverse effects of DTx are not yet well-known, and will be identified eventually, with the passage of time. DTx is beneficial for the collection and analysis of real-world data (RWD); however, they require new and distinct work to collect and analyze high-quality RWD. Naturally, whether this is possible must be independently ascertained through scientific methods. Depending on the type of disease, it is not recommended that DTx be prescribed, even if the patient rejects conventional treatment. Prescription of conventional pharmacotherapy is often necessary, and if the prescription of DTx is inadequate, the critical time for initial treatment may be missed. There is no basis for continuing DTx use by patients. Rather, the rate of continuity of DTx use is extremely low. While many conventional pharmacotherapies have undergone numerous verification and safety tests over a long time, barriers to the application of DTx in the medical field are lower than those for conventional pharmacotherapies. Considering these reasons, except for certain special cases, an approach to DTx is needed that complements the prescription of conventional pharmacotherapy by the medical staff. When DTx are prescribed by doctors who clearly know their advantages and disadvantages, the doctors' expertise may undergo further refinement, and the quality of medical care is expected to improve.

An Overview of Digital Health in the Transition of Pediatric to Adult Epilepsy Care

Children with epilepsy often have impairments in cognitive and behavioral functioning which may hinder socio-occupational well-being as they reach adulthood. Adolescents with epilepsy have the added worry of health problems while starting the transition from family-centered pediatric care into largely autonomous adult care. If this transition is not appropriately planned and resourced, it may result in medical mistrust, nonadherence, and worsening biopsychosocial health as an adult. In recent years, there has been increased availability of digital health solutions that may be used during this stark change in care and treating teams. The digital health landscape includes a wide variety of technologies meant to address challenges faced by patients, caregivers, medical professionals, and health care systems. These technologies include mobile health products and wearable devices (e.g., seizure monitors and trackers, smartphone passive data collection), digital therapeutics (e.g., cognitive/behavioral health management; digital speech–language therapy), telehealth services (e.g., teleneurology visits), and health information technology (e.g., electronic medical records with patient portals). Such digital health solutions may empower patients in their journey toward optimal brain health during the vulnerable period of pediatric to adult care transition. Further research is needed to validate and measure their impact on clinical outcomes, health economics, and quality of life.

Conversational Therapy through Semi-Immersive Virtual Reality Environments for Language Recovery and Psychological Well-Being in Post Stroke Aphasia

Aphasia is a highly disabling acquired language disorder generally caused by a left-lateralized brain damage. Even if traditional therapies have been shown to induce an adequate clinical improvement, a large percentage of patients are left with some degree of language impairments. Therefore, new approaches to common speech therapies are urgently needed in order to maximize the recovery from aphasia. The recent application of virtual reality (VR) to aphasia rehabilitation has already evidenced its usefulness in promoting a more pragmatically oriented treatment than conventional therapies (CT). In the present study, thirty-six chronic persons with aphasia (PWA) were randomly assigned to two groups. The VR group underwent conversational therapy during VR everyday life setting observation, while the control group was trained in a conventional setting without VR support. All patients were extensively tested through a neuropsychological battery which included not only measures for language skills and communication efficacy but also self-esteem and quality of life questionnairies. All patients were trained through a conversational approach by a speech therapist twice a week for six months (total 48 sessions). After the treatment, no significant differences among groups were found in the different measures. However, the amount of improvement in the different areas was distributed over far more cognitive and psychological aspects in the VR group than in the control group. Indeed, the within-group comparisons showed a significant enhancement in different language tasks (i.e., oral comprehension, repetition, and written language) only in the VR group. Significant gains, after the treatment, were also found, in the VR group, in different psychological dimensions (i.e., self-esteem and emotional and mood state). Given the importance of these aspects for aphasia recovery, we believe that our results add to previous evidence which points to the ecological validity and feasibility of VR treatment for language recovery and psychosocial well-being.

Novel Targets for Stroke Therapy: Special Focus on TRPC Channels and TRPC6

Stroke remains a leading cause of death, disability, and medical care burden worldwide. However, transformation from laboratory findings toward effective pharmacological interventions for clinical stroke has been unsatisfactory. Novel evidence has been gained on the underlying mechanisms and therapeutic potential related to the transient receptor potential (TRP) channels in several disorders. The TRP superfamily consists of a diverse group of Ca²⁺ permeable non-selective cation channels. In particular, the members of TRP subfamilies, TRP canonical (TRPC) channels and TRPC6, have been found in different cell types in the whole body and have high levels of expression in the central nervous system (CNS). Notably, the TRPCs and TRPC6 channel have been implicated in neurite outgrowth and neuronal survival during normal development and in a range of CNS pathological conditions. Recent studies have shown that suppression of TRPC6 channel degradation prevents ischemic neuronal cell death in experimental stroke. Accumulating evidence supports the important functions of TRPC6 in brain ischemia. We have highlighted some crucial advancement that points toward an important involvement of TRPCs and TRPC6 in ischemic stroke. This review will make an overview of the TRP and TRPC channels due to their roles as targets for clinical trials and CNS disorders. Besides, the primary goal is to discuss and update the critical role of TRPC6 channels in stroke and provide a promising target for stroke prevention and therapy.