Reflecting on the innovative health tech of 2023

Physical Health | Article |
2023 has been a big year for tech. From the introduction and rapid integration of ChatGPT-4 into our lives to the boom in wellness apps – and not to forget Twitter becoming X – this year has seen exponential growth in the technology sector. Health tech is no different, with innovators and scientists clamouring to create the next big thing with the potential to transform our lives. 

In the post-COVID era, we’ve seen an explosion in start-ups that increase accessibility and reduce costs in the online space, a shift to a more proactive and personalised healthcare model, and innovations focused on solving chronic health problems.

So what are some of the top health tech innovations of 2023?

Wysa

Wysa is a leader in mental health tech and is aimed at easing the global mental health crisis. It is a completely anonymous and free conversational AI that offers coaching programs, therapeutic programs (including cognitive behaviour therapy [CBT]) and dialectical behaviour therapy [DBT]), on-demand support, and even a mix of care from AI and human mental health professionals1,2. Wysa aims to support both people with sub-clinical symptoms and people with some mental illnesses. It is available in 95 countries, has been studied in more than 15 peer-reviewed publications, and is already a staple within the UK National Health Service (NHS)1. We are pleased to add that Wysa is one of our 2023 Zurich Innovation Championship winners.

Fisify

Fisify joins in on the ultra-personalised and proactive healthcare movement by providing immediate AI-driven physiotherapy services 24/7. Their AI physio, Aurya, analyses more than 50 variables and evaluates your symptoms to generate a personalised treatment plan3. Aurya can also correct your home workout exercises in real time to prevent potential injuries3.

Fisify is a 2023 Zurich Innovation Championship winner, and with 40,000 global users already, Fisify aims to deliver tangible improvements – 95.6% of their patients reduced their symptoms within 10 sessions4.

Galleri

Galleri® redefines cancer management through the concept that prevention is better than cure. Galleri® is a single blood test that screens over 100,000 DNA regions and more than 1,000,000 DNA sites for a specific cancer signal (i.e. a unique DNA pattern) shared by over 50 cancers5. If a cancer signal is detected, you are provided with a prediction of which tissues or organs the signal is likely to be associated with, which you can then follow up with your healthcare practitioner5.

The earlier a cancer is detected, the greater the chance of curing it. Not only that, but the change in cure rates is drastic – 6 in 10 people survive lung cancer if detected during the earliest stage.6,7. In Australia, 3 cancers are currently screened for, while Galleri® can screen for more than 505,8. Galleri® has the potential to radically change how we detect and manage cancer.

NAQI LOGIX

NAQI LOGIX acts as a health tech bridge between people with a disability and the physical world to improve personal independence and accessibility. It is a set of earbuds that allows an individual to control their technology – whether that be using a wheelchair, writing an email or playing a video game – purely through their facial micro-gestures9. The NAQI LOGIX technology uses gyroscopic sensors, along with muscle and brainwave sensors, to read a person’s facial micro-gestures9.

NAQI LOGIX is designed to empower people to live independently, which is correlated with improvements in feelings of personal dignity and safety, and can boost mental health10,11.

Zuranolone (zurzuvae)

As one of the most recent advancements in the booming Femtech industry, Zuranolone is the first and only oral postpartum depression (PPD) treatment12. PPD affects 1 in 6 women in Australia, and is widely associated with a substantial drop in the levels of the hormone allopregnanolone in the postpartum period13,14. Zuranolone is a synthetically derived form of allopregnanolone that is specifically designed to treat PPD12.

Zuranolone is effective in as little as 3 days, and usually treatment is only required for 2 weeks13. By contrast, the typical medications for PPD treatment are traditional antidepressants, which take weeks to become effective and are not specific to PPD14.

RGD-Chi@tPA

RGD-Chi@tPA redefines how life-saving medications are administered. RGD-Chi@tPA involves nanovesicles that can be injected into the bloodstream and release medication at targeted sites within the body. These nanovesicles transport the medication to where it’s needed and increase medication efficacy through its targeted release15.

RGD-Chi@tPA is being developed to treat strokes, pulmonary embolisms and heart attacks16.

Navigating new technologies

Health tech is an incredible resource; however, it comes with some potential hazards that need to be kept in mind.

Regulations for new technologies are still being established due to the rapid pace of tech development and require balance and compromise to be effective. Recently Google, Microsoft and Amazon all objected to proposed rules in the US to govern AI health tech, due to how broad the proposed regulations were17,18. As a consequence, it may be unclear how your health data is used while governance catches up.

One technology to be conscious of is black-box algorithms, which can be used by AI to make decisions or predictions without providing a clear explanation of how it arrived at those results 19. It's called a "black box" because the inner workings of the AI model are not easily understandable or transparent. This can be potentially troublesome in healthcare where practitioners need to know how and why AI is making decisions. For this reason, there is already a shift towards transparent AI within healthcare19.

A further consideration is whether the data being used is relevant to your specific circumstances. Health data is primarily collected from high-income countries17 – so if you belong to a minority group or do not live in a high-income country, the health information you receive may not be as appropriate17.

Using health technology safely

Not all health tech is created equal. So it is a good idea to research whether an app or technology is approved by a governance body or known to your healthcare practitioner – if it is, it’s more likely to be trustworthy. Governance bodies that may be helpful include:

In general, our recommendation is to remember that health tech is a tool, not a replacement – your healthcare practitioners are your best resource and provider of healthcare. So it’s essential that health tech is used hand in hand with your overall healthcare, not in place of it22.

Health tech has evolved rapidly this year to improve our lives for the better. At Zurich, we are always looking for more innovative ways to partner with our customers on their journey to stay healthy and feel healthier.

References:

1.     Wysa, ‘Mental health that meets people where they are’, 2023.

2.     Wysa, ‘FAQs’, 2023.

3.     Fisify, ‘Meet Aurya’, 2022.

4.     Fisify, ‘Designing the physiotherapy of the future’, 2022.

5.     Galleri, ‘What cancers does Galleri® screen for?’, 2023.

6.     Hawkes N. ‘Cancer survival data emphasis importance of early diagnosis’. BMJ, 364:1408, 2019, doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.l408.

7.     Cancer Research UK, ‘What is early cancer diagnosis important?’, March 2023.

8.     Australian Government Department of Health and Aged Care, ‘Screening for cancer’, November 2023.

9.     NAQI LOGIX, ‘Everyone’s Superpower’, 2023.

10.   Crocker M, Hutchinson C, Mpundu-Kaambwa C, Walker R, Chen G, Ratcliffe J. ‘Assessing the relative importance of key quality of life dimensions for people with and without a disability: an empirical ranking comparison study’, Health and Quality of Life Outcomes, 264, 2021, doi: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12955-021-01901-x.

11.   Fekete C, Siegrist J, Post MWM, Brinkhof MWG for the SwiSCI Study Group. ‘Productive activities, mental health and quality of life in disability: exploring the role of enhancement and the role strain hypotheses’, BMC Psychology, 1, 2019, doi: https://doi.org/10.1186/s40359-018-0276-6.

12.   Biogen, ‘FDA Approves ZURZUVAETM (zuranolone), the First and Only Oral Treatment Approved for Women with Postpartum Depression, and Issues a Complete Response Letter for Major Depressive Disorder’, August 2023.

13.   Walkery A, Leader LD, Cooke E, VandenBerg A. ‘Review of Allopregnanolone Agonist Therapy for the Treatment of Depressive Disorders’, Drug Design, Development and Therapy, 15:3017-3026, 2021, doi: https://doi.org/10.2147/DDDT.S240856.

14.   COPE: https://cope.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Final-COPE-Perinatal-Mental-Health-Guideline.pdf

15.   Imperial College London, ‘A novel targeted drug delivery system’.

16.   Huang Y, Jiang J, Ren J, Guo Y, Zhao Q, Zhou J, Li Y, Chen R. ‘A Fibrinogen-Mimicking, Activated-Platelet-Sensitive Nanocoacervate Enhances Thrombus Targeting and Penetration of Tissue Plasminogen Activator for Effective Thrombolytic Therapy’, Advanced Healthcare Materials, 11:2201265, 2022, doi: https://doi.org/10.1002/adhm.202201265.

17.   The Lancet. ‘AI in medicine: creating a safe and equitable future’, The Lancet, 402(10401):P503, 2023, doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(23)01668-9.

18.   Lima C, DiMolfetta D. ‘Google bucks calls for a new AI regulator’. The Washington Post, June 2023.

19.   Warren J. ‘Black Box AI Models are Dead. Here’s How Healthcare AI Companies Plan to Fix It’. Goodfirms, October 2023.

20.   Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Healthcare, ‘NSQDMH Accredited Services’, 2023.

21.   ORCHA, ‘Health App Library’, 2023.

22.   Black Dog Institute: https://www.blackdoginstitute.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/BDI_MHM_DiscussionPaper.pdf