US FDA has approved the first pill that can be digitally tracked through the body.
The Abilify MyCite, which is Aripiprazole tablet is the one.
Aripiprazole, sold under the brand name Abilify, is an atypical antipsychotic.
Those newly approved tablets are for treating schizophrenia and manic episodes.
They have an ingestible sensor embedded inside them and records that the medication has been taken.
This allows the patients, their doctors and their families insight on when (and if) the medication was taken.
Dosing is not tracked in real time. According to the FDA, it takes from 30 minutes to 2 hours for the sensor to relay information to the wearable patch, which patients are wearing.
FDA stated that tablet tracking function is useful for certain types of patients including depression, bipolar disorder and schizophrenia with adults, misery psychosis affecting 1% of adults in the United States.
This tablet is not approved for use in elderly patients with dementia-related psychosis.
The sensor operates when it comes in contact with stomach fluid.
Indeed this could be very helpful if your loved ones are having serious mental diseases. Some patients strongly refuse to take the medication. One of the reason is that the medical treatment sometimes suppresses these "mental activities". Some patients say "I feel like I completely have lost myself when I take the pill. I feel I am not me."
However, schizophrenia is a progressive disease. If you refuse treatment, it gets worse. In some culture, people tend to think "mental illness is a huge shame for the whole family". Some parents refuse to accept the fact that their child is having a mental issue. As a result, some of the tragic Family murders are said to be caused by those children.
Considering those cases, this new 'trackable' pill can be a good news.
