CASE STUDY
Pediatric Allergy Caregiver Decision SupportA Product + Digital Companion
Better And Faster Diagnostic Acuity Of Food Allergies In Infants
Cow’s Milk Allergy (CMA) is one of the most common food allergies in infants. It is a condition that afflicts 7.5% of newborns and can take an average of 3 months to diagnose as it often presents with diverse and non-specific symptoms.
The Client
A Top 5 Global Nutraceuticals Leader
Clinical Focus
Food Allergies
Intended Use
Non-SaMD
The Result
Piloted in 2017 and launched in the UK in 2018, expanded to Nordics (Denmark, Finland, Norway) and Germany in 2018; Russia and Asia in 2019.
Challenge
Parents would describe inconsolable crying, colic, skin rashes, vomiting, diarrhea, and constipation, but because CMA has composite symptoms and conflation with other common infant afflictions, it is difficult to diagnose. HCPs are often unfamiliar or find it challenging to recognize the CMA condition, especially in markets where front-line general practitioners handle pediatrics.
Approach
We used robust, Lean research and solution definition, including pediatric KOLs, data science experts, and parents whose babies were diagnosed with CMPA at a late stage of their infancy (6m+). The approach also included protocol and study design, planning, ethics review submission, and Software-as-a-Medical-Device (SAMD) risk assessment. We utilized an Agile software development, QA, and deployment process on Android.
Solution
We co-created with parents a composite symptom tracker with a proprietary set of risk calculations, packaged in the form of a mobile app. Medullan’s VARA platform and services offerings facilitated the interaction between caregivers and healthcare providers. The app does pattern analysis, education, and decision support and enables easy tracking of feeding events, symptoms, and stool in real-time. It leverages built-in phone cameras and voice journaling to empower parents with data to advocate for their babies during pediatric visits.
By The Numbers
Star Ranking In App Stores
4+
User Preference for Digital Capture
100%
Supported Languages
5
Target Users
First-time parents and their infant children
Technology
Native mobile apps (iOS and Android) with personalization and data aggregation powered by VARA
Markets
United States, Mexico, United Kingdom, Germany, Australia, Nordics
Testimonial
Used this for my little girl – really helped to narrow down when symptoms happened and, in the end, confirmed that she had a milk allergy through tracking feeds and symptoms.