AlignMap In Cites
AlignMap In Cites offers annotated links to web sites, news, research, and other material relevant to treatment adherence & patient compliance. AlignMap In Cites, the AlignMap Web Site, the AlignMap Weblog, and the AlignMap Furl Archive are produced by Allan Showalter, MD
Apr 22, 2008
8:04am
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A breath-monitoring device … allow[s] patients to participate in a type of virtual DOT [directly observed therapy] from home.
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- [Note: Source is Press Release.] Scientists test device to track medication adherence in patients with HIV/AIDS Excerpt: The researchers developed the adherence monitor by incorporating minute amounts of an alcohol into a gel capsule. The additive, called 2-butanol, is one of many GRAS — Generally Recognized as Safe — compounds approved by the Food and Drug Administration for use in foods. “We wanted (patients) to swallow a chemical and have it transform into something else that’s easy to monitor,” said Matthew Booth, Ph.D., an assistant professor of anesthesiology at the UF College of Medicine and an investigator in the study. “When it hits the stomach lining and liver, an enzyme converts the alcohol to a gas that can be measured in the breath. To determine how well the byproduct could be detected, six healthy volunteers swallowed empty pills in which the capsules contained trace amounts of 2-butanol. After five to 10 minutes, the scientists could measure the volatile byproduct in the volunteers’ breath using a small detector. The scientists say their device could also be used to monitor medication adherence in patients with other communicable diseases, such as tuberculosis. It is encouraging that the biological and chemical elements of the adherence system work as predicted. We were able to conclusively show who swallowed the capsules containing the 2-butanol. With further optimization, we are optimistic the device will perform very well,” said Donn Dennis, M.D., the Joachim S. Gravenstein professor of anesthesiology at the UF College of Medicine and an investigator in the study. The researchers say the device may prove equally helpful for monitoring adherence in clinical trials.
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