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Little blue pill meets a little blue light.
A digital application can improve erectile function, according to new research presented at the European Association of Urology (EAU) Annual Congress on April 8, 2024.
Researchers developed a 12-week, self-managed program to treat erectile dysfunction (ED). The program is delivered to patients’ mobile devices and encourages users to do cardiovascular training, pelvic floor exercises, and physiotherapy. It also provides information about ED, sexual therapy, and stress management.
“The treatment of ED through physical activity and/or lifestyle changes is recommended in current European guidelines but is not well established in clinical practice,” according to the researchers.
App or Waitlist
The app, known as Kranus Edera, was created by Kranus Health. It is available by prescription in Germany and France.
To study the effectiveness of the app, investigators conducted a randomized controlled trial at the University Hospital Münster in Germany.
The study included 241 men who had scores of 21 or less on the International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF-5).
About half of the participants were randomly assigned to get the app. The rest were placed on a waiting list for the technology and served as a control group.
Men who received the app also reported gains in measures of quality of life (20.5 vs −0.04) and patient activation (11.1 vs 0.64).
Nearly nine in 10 people who used the app did so several times per week, the researchers reported.
Sabine Kliesch, MD, with University Hospital Münster, led the study, which was presented at a poster session on April 8 at the EAU Congress in Paris.
Fully Reimbursed in Germany
In Germany, Kranus Edera has been included on a government list of digital health apps that are fully reimbursed by insurers, partly based on the results of the clinical trial. The cost there is €235 (about $255).
Patients typically notice improvements in 2-4 weeks, according to the company’s website. Patients who are taking a phosphodiesterase-5 enzyme inhibitor for ED may continue taking the medication, although they may no longer need it or they may be able to reduce the dose after treatment with the app, it says.
Kranus also has virtual treatments for incontinence in women and voiding dysfunction.
The app is meant to save doctors time by providing patients with detailed explanations and guidance within the app itself, said Laura Wiemer, MD, senior medical director of Kranus.
The app’s modules help reinforce guideline-recommended approaches to the treatment of ED “in playful ways with awards, motivational messages, and individual adjustments to help achieve better adherence and compliance of the patient,” Dr. Wiemer told this news organization.
Kranus plans to expand to the United States in 2024, she said.
A version of this article appeared on Medscape.com.
Little blue pill meets a little blue light.
A digital application can improve erectile function, according to new research presented at the European Association of Urology (EAU) Annual Congress on April 8, 2024.
Researchers developed a 12-week, self-managed program to treat erectile dysfunction (ED). The program is delivered to patients’ mobile devices and encourages users to do cardiovascular training, pelvic floor exercises, and physiotherapy. It also provides information about ED, sexual therapy, and stress management.
“The treatment of ED through physical activity and/or lifestyle changes is recommended in current European guidelines but is not well established in clinical practice,” according to the researchers.
App or Waitlist
The app, known as Kranus Edera, was created by Kranus Health. It is available by prescription in Germany and France.
To study the effectiveness of the app, investigators conducted a randomized controlled trial at the University Hospital Münster in Germany.
The study included 241 men who had scores of 21 or less on the International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF-5).
About half of the participants were randomly assigned to get the app. The rest were placed on a waiting list for the technology and served as a control group.
Men who received the app also reported gains in measures of quality of life (20.5 vs −0.04) and patient activation (11.1 vs 0.64).
Nearly nine in 10 people who used the app did so several times per week, the researchers reported.
Sabine Kliesch, MD, with University Hospital Münster, led the study, which was presented at a poster session on April 8 at the EAU Congress in Paris.
Fully Reimbursed in Germany
In Germany, Kranus Edera has been included on a government list of digital health apps that are fully reimbursed by insurers, partly based on the results of the clinical trial. The cost there is €235 (about $255).
Patients typically notice improvements in 2-4 weeks, according to the company’s website. Patients who are taking a phosphodiesterase-5 enzyme inhibitor for ED may continue taking the medication, although they may no longer need it or they may be able to reduce the dose after treatment with the app, it says.
Kranus also has virtual treatments for incontinence in women and voiding dysfunction.
The app is meant to save doctors time by providing patients with detailed explanations and guidance within the app itself, said Laura Wiemer, MD, senior medical director of Kranus.
The app’s modules help reinforce guideline-recommended approaches to the treatment of ED “in playful ways with awards, motivational messages, and individual adjustments to help achieve better adherence and compliance of the patient,” Dr. Wiemer told this news organization.
Kranus plans to expand to the United States in 2024, she said.
A version of this article appeared on Medscape.com.
Little blue pill meets a little blue light.
A digital application can improve erectile function, according to new research presented at the European Association of Urology (EAU) Annual Congress on April 8, 2024.
Researchers developed a 12-week, self-managed program to treat erectile dysfunction (ED). The program is delivered to patients’ mobile devices and encourages users to do cardiovascular training, pelvic floor exercises, and physiotherapy. It also provides information about ED, sexual therapy, and stress management.
“The treatment of ED through physical activity and/or lifestyle changes is recommended in current European guidelines but is not well established in clinical practice,” according to the researchers.
App or Waitlist
The app, known as Kranus Edera, was created by Kranus Health. It is available by prescription in Germany and France.
To study the effectiveness of the app, investigators conducted a randomized controlled trial at the University Hospital Münster in Germany.
The study included 241 men who had scores of 21 or less on the International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF-5).
About half of the participants were randomly assigned to get the app. The rest were placed on a waiting list for the technology and served as a control group.
Men who received the app also reported gains in measures of quality of life (20.5 vs −0.04) and patient activation (11.1 vs 0.64).
Nearly nine in 10 people who used the app did so several times per week, the researchers reported.
Sabine Kliesch, MD, with University Hospital Münster, led the study, which was presented at a poster session on April 8 at the EAU Congress in Paris.
Fully Reimbursed in Germany
In Germany, Kranus Edera has been included on a government list of digital health apps that are fully reimbursed by insurers, partly based on the results of the clinical trial. The cost there is €235 (about $255).
Patients typically notice improvements in 2-4 weeks, according to the company’s website. Patients who are taking a phosphodiesterase-5 enzyme inhibitor for ED may continue taking the medication, although they may no longer need it or they may be able to reduce the dose after treatment with the app, it says.
Kranus also has virtual treatments for incontinence in women and voiding dysfunction.
The app is meant to save doctors time by providing patients with detailed explanations and guidance within the app itself, said Laura Wiemer, MD, senior medical director of Kranus.
The app’s modules help reinforce guideline-recommended approaches to the treatment of ED “in playful ways with awards, motivational messages, and individual adjustments to help achieve better adherence and compliance of the patient,” Dr. Wiemer told this news organization.
Kranus plans to expand to the United States in 2024, she said.
A version of this article appeared on Medscape.com.