After beginning the U.S. launch of its AspyreRx digital therapeutic for Type 2 diabetes last fall, Better Therapeutics is kicking off the new year by ramping up that rollout.
With an aim of getting the app into even more patients’ hands—and onto their smartphones—the company announced Wednesday that it will integrate the treatment program into Glooko’s diabetes management platform.
“Glooko is an ideal partner for us to support the adoption of AspyreRx, given the extensive overlap between providers using the Glooko platform and those we have identified as early adopters for AspyreRx,” Better CEO Frank Karbe said in the announcement. “Glooko’s precision engagement has the potential to accelerate access to AspyreRx for patients who may benefit from this innovative new treatment.”
AspyreRx, which was cleared by the FDA last summer, is a prescription-only treatment that uses cognitive behavioral therapy techniques to help adults with Type 2 diabetes better manage their health. Studies have shown that using the app can result in statistically significant blood sugar reductions over the course of several months.
Glooko’s platform, meanwhile, compiles data from a wide range of devices—spanning diabetes-specific glucose monitors and insulin pumps, as well as more general health trackers like Fitbits and Apple Watches—and arranges that information in a single, easy-to-peruse app. The resulting database can be automatically shared with healthcare providers and added to electronic health records.
With the new partnership, on the clinician-facing side of the platform, Glooko’s technology will automatically flag patients who may be a good fit for the AspyreRx digital therapeutic, and doctors will then be able to prescribe the program and track their patients’ progress through the platform.
According to the duo, in the U.S., Glooko’s technology is already used by clinicians spanning nearly 5,000 facilities and has helped more than 3.4 million people with diabetes manage the condition.
The addition of the AspyreRx treatment program is just the latest way that Glooko has sought to bulk up its platform’s capabilities.
Last spring, for example, it struck a partnership with Hedia, a Danish software developer, that added the Hedia Diabetes Assistant into the Glooko app for European users. The digital assistant is equipped with an algorithm to calculate insulin dosing recommendations based on blood sugar readings and activity, food and weight data.
Before that, Glooko acquired Xbird, with an aim of using the Berlin-based company’s machine learning software to analyze the health data uploaded to the platform and provide users with suggested behavioral and lifestyle changes that could potentially improve their health outcomes.