The University of Queensland (UQ) in Australia has partnered with the university’s Queensland Brain Institute and Abbott Neuromodulation to develop a remote care platform to treat various conditions such as Parkinson’s disease, chronic depression, and other psychiatric conditions. A device such as the one coming out of UQ and Abbott Neuromodulation could be incredibly helpful as we see a rise in neurological conditions, observes GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.

Alexandra Murdoch, Medical Device Analyst at GlobalData, comments: “As of 2021, 14.7% out of the almost 1 million people in the US who have been diagnosed with Parkinson’s are considered advanced cases. That number is expected to grow to 16.1% by 2030. In addition, 7% of the US population has been diagnosed with major depressive disorder as of 2021. In Australia, about 80,000 people have been diagnosed with Parkinson’s, and 5.6% of those are considered advanced cases. Additionally, almost 4% of the Australian population has been diagnosed with major depressive disorder.”

Patients will be able to access care from anywhere in the world, and their healthcare professionals will have the ability to monitor them remotely. Electrodes are surgically inserted into the patient’s brain, and electrical stimulation is then delivered via pacemaker, thus altering brain function and providing therapeutic relief. The digital platform will allow healthcare professionals to monitor their patient’s remotely, as well as adjust the device to treat symptoms in real time, without having to see the patient in person. This platform will allow for data-driven clinical decisions and ultimately promote more personalized treatment.

Murdoch continues: “Since this device is remote and wireless, it has the capacity to help a lot of patients who live in rural or hard to reach communities. This device could allow them to access the same level of care as those who live in cities.”

Developers of this device began working on it prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, and finalized it in October of 2021, when it was approved and rolled out in Australia. More recently, the device has received CE-Mark as well as FDA approval.