• Yuri A Maricich, Warren K Bickel, Lisa A Marsch, Kirstin Gatchalian, Jeffrey Botbyl, and Hilary F Luderer.
• Pear Therapeutics, Inc., Boston, MA, USA.
• Curr Med Res Opin. 2021 Feb 1; 37 (2): 167173167-173.

ObjectivesTo evaluate the safety and efficacy of a digital therapeutic in treatment-seeking individuals with opioid use disorder (OUD) in an analysis of randomized clinical trial (RCT) data (ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT00929253).MethodsSecondary analysis of an RCT including 170 adults meeting DSM-IV criteria for OUD. Participants were randomized to 12-weeks of treatment-as-usual (TAU) or TAU plus a digital therapeutic providing 67 digital, interactive educational modules based on the Community Reinforcement Approach. TAU consisted of buprenorphine maintenance therapy, 30 min biweekly clinician interaction, and abstinence-based contingency management. Primary endpoints were treatment retention and abstinence (negative urine drug screen) during weeks 9-12 of treatment. Safety was assessed by evaluating adverse events.ResultsParticipants randomized to TAU plus a digital therapeutic had significantly greater odds of opioid abstinence during weeks 9-12 compared to TAU: 77.3 versus 62.1%, respectively (p=.02), OR 2.08, 95% CI 1.10-3.95. The risk of patients leaving treatment was significantly lower in the digital therapeutic group (HR 0.49, 95% CI 0.26-0.92). No significant difference was observed in the rate of adverse events between groups (p=.42).ConclusionsA prescription digital therapeutic (PDT) in combination with buprenorphine therapy improves clinically significant patient outcomes including abstinence from illicit opioids and retention in treatment compared with treatment as usual.

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