AffeX Patient Management System - AffeX-PMS

Raised blood pressure (BP) or hypertension is the single most preventable cause of stroke, heart attack, heart failure and cardiovascular death. It is also a leading factor for an increased risk of dementia, and kidney failure. By lowering BP the combined risk of associated disability and death can be reduced by more than a half. However, despite the widespread availability of drugs that help lower BP, ~40% patients using these drugs fail to properly control their BP (2.5m in England). Importantly, for these patients, there are no other regulatory approved treatment options available. Studies have shown that electrically stimulating nerves (autonomic nerve) can reduce BP in these patients. Several companies are working on solutions, all involve invasive devices and/or in-hospital procedures that are costly. In contrast, Afferent has developed a solution which achieves the same effect non-invasively. By attaching electrodes to the skin of the outer ear using an approach called transcutaneous autonomic neuromodulation, BP can be effectively reduced. This is currently being tested in a clinical trial by Queen Mary University London (QMUL).

Afferent's solution is low cost, very safe and patients can treat themselves at home. This project will investigate how we could make this technology easier to use at home and also manage patients rather than them visit their GPs to have their condition managed remotely. As we are using an electronic device we can easily check when the device was used and if it was used correctly. If we also get patients to check their BP using a home BP-monitor we can then use internet technologies to send this information to the GP who can see if the patient is managing control and advise if any change to treatment is needed. This project will build the computer system that will enable this and also a mobile app so patients can self-monitor their own condition.

We believe this technology could help other patients. 90% of stroke victims are cannot be given medical treatments to remove the blood clot in the brain and for these patients there is no other medical treatment. We think Afferent's technology may also help these patients recover by helping restore the blood supply to the parts of the brain which have been starved of oxygen. Our colleagues at QMUL will undertake a proof of concept study to determine if giving this treatment on arrival at hospital helps stroke victim recovery.