3M’s Intelligent Inhaler Wins Excellence in Drug Delivery Devices Award at CPhI

3M’s Intelligent Control Inhaler was announced the winner of the drug delivery devices category at the 2016 CPhI Pharma Awards. The inhaler was developed to address the problems of poor adherence among patients with asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) as well as inconsistent competence when using current treatment devices. Poor technique in using an inhaler, coupled with the challenges of getting patients to adhere to their medication protocols, can lead to exacerbations of the disease, increased use of healthcare resources, and a burden on healthcare systems. 3M recognizes that better outcomes can be achieved by increasing patient adherence and competence.

The Intelligent Control Inhaler is an intuitive, fully-integrated device delivering accurate doses of medication to patients, while providing on-screen instructions for use and feedback to the patient and healthcare provider via an app. It comes with unique features that offer opportunities to improve outcomes by reducing patient variability and errors and providing data on use to healthcare providers and payers.

The inhaler combines breath actuation with innovative technology to control inspiratory flow rate. This feature significantly reduces errors in technique and results in a much higher level of consistency of drug delivery between breaths and between patients. The inhaler’s patient-proof design helps eliminate critical errors when using the device and minimizes the resources dedicated to training patients in correct inhalation techniques.

The dose is registered when the patient correctly inhales medication rather than on actuation of the device. This delivers greater accuracy of information for the patient and cost-savings for healthcare providers, who can avoid unnecessary switches and treatment escalation. The inhaler also uses a data management platform to record not only device usage, but also inspiration profiles to help monitor disease progression, further supporting informed treatment decisions.

Source: 3M