Litmus Health announced yesterday the release of a new version of its device-friendly clinical research platform for the collection and analysis of real-world data.

Built with new features to help pharmaceutical companies from the beginning to the end of their drug trials, the platform now adds Actigraph’s medical-grade wearables to its repertoire of supported devices, which previously included Fitbit and Garmin products.

"We’re in a new era of understanding the patient experience through real-life data, and translating that information into insights to improve drug development,” Dr. Samuel Volchenboum, chief medical officer of Litmus Health, told MobiHealthNews in an email statement. “Patient health doesn’t begin and end in the clinic, and the scope and sophistication of wearable devices is finally breaking down that barrier. At Litmus, we’re focused on making sure that the data from these devices are harnessed effectively and that we, as an industry, continue to develop the standards and technological tools to realize its full value.”

In addition to incorporating devices and a companion smartphone app, Litmus’ technology places a heavy emphasis on data security and flexible design. Along with highlighting its HIPAA-compliant data infrastructure and encryption, the new version of the platform offers both on-premise datacenter deployments as well as managed private clouds for single or multiple tenants. Data stored within the platform are tracked with clear audit trails, and can be analyzed using Litmus’ supervised and unsupervised machine learning tech.

WHY IT MATTERS

It’s little secret that pharmaceutical companies are looking to increase their capacity for real-world data trials. Litmus’ revamped platform is hoping satisfy this demand by providing tools, features and conveniences that streamline the drug trial process without compromising the quality of the data.

"It’s exciting to see that there is a real and pressing demand for a platform like Litmus,” Daphne  Kis, CEO of Litmus Health, said in a statement. “A few years ago, real life data was something people were talking about, eager to use for its unparalleled insight into the patient experience, but did not yet know how to begin to implement it. Now, we see a shift to incorporate data collected at the point of experience into every stage of the clinical trial. We’re proud to be a part of that shift by providing a technological foundation that meets the needs of the industry.”

THE LARGER TREND

In its announcement, Litmus highlighted an ongoing three-year University of Chicago study using the company’s technology and funded by Takeda Pharmaceuticals. It launched the first public version of the platform back in 2016.

Elsewhere, TriNetX raised a $40 million Series D in March for its own real-world evidence research platform, just shortly after Aetion’s $27 million round and Evidation Health’s $30 million round.