Epilepsy.com Launches New iPhone App to Help People With Epilepsy Manage Seizures, Symptoms and Treatment

"My Epilepsy Diary" is Newly Launched as an Advanced Self-Management Tool Designed to Benefit Patients, Physicians and Future Research

MIDDLEBURG, Va., April 28 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Epilepsy Therapy Project (ETP), a non-profit organization dedicated to accelerating new therapies for people living with epilepsy and seizures and the parent organization of epilepsy.com, today announced the launch of an iPhone app called "My Epilepsy Diary," a state-of-the-art, comprehensive data-gathering and reporting tool designed to improve epilepsy care.  

The My Epilepsy Diary iPhone app is part of the Epilepsy Therapy Project Clinical Organizer, an integrated suite of consumer health tools and information offered at no cost on www.epilepsy.com, the #1 epilepsy information and networking site worldwide, with more than 275,000 unique viewers per month.  Conceived by the Epilepsy Therapy Project with leading clinicians and researchers, My Epilepsy Diary is not affiliated with pharmaceutical manufacturers and goes beyond conventional medication diaries.  By capturing comprehensive and multi-dimensional information, My Epilepsy Diary is designed to offer features to people with epilepsy, their families and physicians, which position it as the epilepsy management tool of choice.  Currently 50 million people live with diagnosed and treated epilepsy worldwide.  

"We are working to advance effective therapies for people living with epilepsy and seizures," said Warren Lammert, Chairman and Co-founder of Epilepsy Therapy Project.  "As the father of a young girl with epilepsy, I know too well that every patient and family living with seizures hopes to track seizures and side effects and to communicate effectively with their physician.  Our new Epilepsy Diary and iPhone app make it simple and practical for patients and caregivers to actually keep and share their updates.  It also connects individual patients and families to the in-depth information available on epilepsy.com and to the learning and experience of the broader epilepsy.com community.  And it gives patients and families an opportunity to contribute to building a larger data resource for the community to inform the development of new, more effective therapies."

Leading the Way to a New Generation of Patient Management and Communications

Developed at the request of healthcare professionals and people with epilepsy, My Epilepsy Diary is now available for the iPhone through the App Store.  The diary application can be accessed by searching for "epilepsy."  My Epilepsy Diary utilizes a secure interface to protect patient data and is based on a software platform developed by Irody, Inc.  

For people with epilepsy and their families, this application makes it easier to track events and manage epilepsy and treatments together with their healthcare team.  Users can record seizures, side effects or other personal events related to their epilepsy, filling in details quickly using the many common situations My Epilepsy Diary provides.  The app also helps track medications and dosages, even for non-epilepsy medications and vitamins.  Users can set up email or text reminders to take medications.  A Personal History module allows them to build much more detailed profiles that include non-epilepsy-specific details of the patient's life and health, including familial patterns, which may impact treatment options and effectiveness.  

For physicians, nurses and other healthcare professionals, the My Epilepsy Diary iPhone app will provide real-time and relevant data that can clarify diagnoses and improve patient treatment.  The application will allow patients to email seizure activity reports and personal medical histories directly to their physicians.    

"Knowing detailed information about the timing of seizures and associated events can help an epilepsy doctor a lot with developing a treatment plan," said Robert S. Fisher, M.D., Ph.D., Director of the Stanford Epilepsy Center, Editor-in-Chief of epilepsy.com, and designer of the Personal History module.  "Now, for those with an iPhone, it's even easier."

"My Epilepsy Diary provides an optimal communications platform for an interactive and effective relationship between people with epilepsy and health professionals," said Patricia Shafer, RN, MN, Epilepsy Clinical Nurse Specialist at the Comprehensive Epilepsy Center, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston and Resource Specialist with epilepsy.com.  "It helps patients to communicate clearly and openly with healthcare professionals -- even if they are overwhelmed with their epilepsy and the way it affects their day-to-day life."

Coming Soon - Access and Broad Compatibility Across Most Web and Smart Phone Platforms

Following the iPhone app launch, epilepsy.com and ETP expect to launch compatible applications for other smart phones, the desktop and the web.  The vision for My Epilepsy Diary is to create a comprehensive patient management tool for the patient using an infrastructure that promises streamlined communications with their healthcare professionals, regardless of where the information is entered.

About Epilepsy

Epilepsy is a neurological disorder that affects approximately three million Americans and 50 million people worldwide.  Epilepsy has many potential causes, but often no definitive cause is found.   Approximately 200,000 new cases of epilepsy will be diagnosed in the United States this year affecting as many people as breast cancer.  The need for more effective therapies is acutely felt by the millions of people worldwide who live with persistent seizures or intolerable side effects of treatment.  

About epilepsy.com

Epilepsy.com is an online resource that was developed by the Epilepsy Therapy Project to provide in-depth information and community for people living with epilepsy. The mission of epilepsy.com is to inform, empower and connect patients, families and caregivers facing newly-diagnosed epilepsy and those struggling with epilepsy that has resisted the usual treatments. Founders and editorial board members of epilepsy.com include leading clinicians and researchers in the field of epilepsy from leading medical institutions. For more information, visit epilepsy.com.

About the Epilepsy Therapy Project

The Epilepsy Therapy Project is a non-profit organization whose mission is to accelerate new therapies for people living with epilepsy and seizures.  Founded in 2002 by a group of parents, distinguished physicians and researchers, the Epilepsy Therapy Project supports the commercialization of new therapies through direct grants and investments in promising academic and commercial projects.  Learn more at www.epilepsy.com.

SOURCE Epilepsy Therapy Project