JUBIwatch Device Targets Medication Adherence
Jubilee BioTech has developed JUBIwatch, a new device intended to improve patients’ medication adherence — taking medicines at the right time with the right dose.
Under development by the startup South Korean company for the past two years, JUBIwatch is a smart watch and medication management platform that uses microneedles to deliver medication to patients.
The device carries the slogan “wear, set, and forget,” which could enable patients to take accurate doses of medications that may be time-sensitive, including those for diseases such as Parkinson’s.
“Through JUBIwatch, we first plan to provide hormonal drugs and medicines that are particularly efficient when taken in small doses in the form of cartridges.” Sung-Kyoung Lee, CEO of Jubilee Biotech, said in a press release.
“We will start mainly with hormones and plan to expand to medicines for stroke and Parkinson’s disease, such as levodopa and rheumatism. These drugs are a priority because they are effective when taken on time. This device/cartridge/app-web service will be a different type of medical platform,” Lee said.
JUBIwatch’s unique platform allows patients to take their medications by simply wearing the device. Medicine is contained in a microneedle cartridge, which the patient inserts into the watch. Medication schedules are then set up via a mobile app. Based on the prescribed schedule, the JUBIwatch’s microneedle then administers the medication through the skin.
JUBIwatch hopes to solve some of the concerns around medication adherence, allowing patients with physical disabilities who may have trouble taking their medications, or those who need caregiver assistance, to take them at the appropriate times.
“As important as developing a good medicine is helping patients take it properly,” Lee said.
The hope is that by using JUBIwatch patients will be less likely to have misdiagnoses based on not adhering to medication protocols. JUBIwatch also allows for both doctors and caregivers to have live feedback regarding the patient’s medication and dosing via the JUBI app, yielding real-time data for medication adherence.
Jubliee is targeting JUBIwatch for U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) pre-submission in 2022, and establishing a U.S. branch in 2022 with the intention of expanding the company for a wide variety of medications. Jubliee hopes to launch a data-based treatment platform with JUBIwatch in the U.S. by the end of 2023.
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