10108335SamphireXR: Digital therapeutics for perimenopausal insomnia and anxietyClosedCollaborative R&DInnovate UKSamphireXR is an innovative digital therapeutic solution, designed to address the mental health challenges faced by peri-menopausal women, a group that has historically been underserved in healthcare. With insomnia and anxiety being significantly more prevalent in women -- particularly around menopause -- SamphireXR emerges as a deeply needed intervention in women's health. This project is especially relevant considering the 13 million peri-menopausal women in the UK workforce, 900,000 of which leave the workforce every year because of menopausal health complaints. At the heart of SamphireXR is the seamless integration of Extended Reality (XR) technology with Samphire's proprietary brain-stimulating wearable, the Nettle headset. The project fuses a modular approach of cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBTi) and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) into a user-friendly XR experience. This pioneering approach marks SamphireXR as the first of its kind: an XR solution explicitly tailored for women's health during hormonal transitions, paired with medical-grade hardware to enhance treatment outcomes. Our dedicated team has made significant progress in developing SamphireXR. A software-based prototype has been crafted in close collaboration with leading scientists and clinicians in the field, alongside the development of intuitive XR interfaces. We are gearing up for the initial rollout through popular VR headsets like Apple's Vision Pro and Meta's Quest, with a view towards platform-agnostic deployment in the future. This strategy ensures the solution's scalability and broad accessibility. We are on track for an initial testing phase within 6 months, with aspirations to attain medical device classification within the next 12 months. SamphireXR not only addresses a critical gap in the current healthcare market but also represents a significant step forward in gender-specific healthcare. The project directly responds to the need for accessible, home-based mental health care solutions, thereby easing the burden on conventional mental health systems and specialists. It also aligns with the societal shift towards more inclusive healthcare solutions, particularly for conditions related to hormonal changes in women. SamphireXR is not just a technological innovation; it's a commitment to transforming the landscape of mental health care for peri-menopausal women. This project represents a shift towards more empathetic, effective, and accessible healthcare solutions for an increasingly significant portion of the UK's workforce. SamphireXR is poised to set new standards in digital therapeutic solutions, offering a specialised, medical-grade alternative that fills a longstanding void in healthcare for peri-menopausal women. [][0] [0]: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26833831/