For more than 130 million Americans, living with a chronic illness is a reality that can have harsh impacts on their daily lives. Although many chronic illnesses are treatable, finding appropriate treatment plans that suit complex individual needs can be as complicated and painful as living with the illness itself. This phenomenon of delayed or inadequate treatment measures is known as therapeutic inertia, and it impacts more people than you think.
DreaMed Diabetes is creating medical technology to alleviate therapeutic inertia for patients living with type 1 and type 2 diabetes. An incredibly common chronic illness, diabetes affects around 1 in every 10 Americans, and roughly 90-95% of cases are type 2, a genetically predisposed condition.
Up to 50% of patients living with type 2 diabetes experience therapeutic inertia, which can lead to debilitating or even fatal consequences. Since 2014, DreaMed's goal has been to close this troubling treatment gap and improve the quality of life for the millions of people affected by diabetes. The company's efforts are centered around providing personalized treatment options based on artificial intelligence and glucose-monitoring data from patients. Endo.digital by DreaMed is the first FDA-cleared decision support system of its kind. The program assists doctors in creating individualized treatment plans with data provided by patients and medical devices.
Eran Atlas, Co-founder and CEO of DreaMed Diabetes
DreaMed's guiding principle is that healthcare is not a "one size fits all" practice, and using the same solutions for every patient regardless of their response or the severity of their case is ineffective. Patients can use endo.digital to upload data from their glucose monitors or meters and insulin delivery devices. Care providers can then easily administer any treatment changes based on the AI algorithm powering endo.digital. Patients can use their updated treatment plans to receive an immediate insulin injection recommendation on their mobile phones at any time.
Technology like endo.digital is vital in addressing type 2 diabetes therapeutic inertia. Already, it can take up to 7 years to properly adjust treatment plans and dosage for patients with chronic illnesses. As diabetes can cause degenerative complications, such large periods of inadequate care can be incredibly detrimental. This is an especially important gap to address in the United States, which has a high rate of diagnoses for diabetes.
In southern states like Louisiana and Georgia, diabetes costs their state medical systems 5.7 and 11 billion dollars annually, respectively. With a diagnosis rate that exceeds the national average, the ineffective treatment creates an even heavier burden on care providers and a disproportionate number of patients. Using technology that can provide instant relief and changes to treatment can help ease the weight of treating such a widely spread illness.
Leveraging artificial technology can address the unique needs of diabetes patients without medical system backlogs that stall treatments and add stress. Like with any illness, external factors like weight, cardiovascular health, and environmental stressors all greatly impact the different types of data used for analysis to determine the treatment needed for each patient. DreaMed takes this challenge in stride to improve how patients have their unique needs addressed.
On June 3-7, New Orleans is hosting the 82nd Scientific Session for the American Diabetes Association (ADA). This conference brings the best and brightest in diabetes research and cares to meet and discuss advancements in an area plagued by the illness. Visitors can discover DreaMed's technology at the conference up close and personal. With the potential to impact millions of lives for the better, DreaMed's appearance at the conference is a first step to implementing a key advancement in the wide-scale treatment of diabetes therapeutic inertia.
