Preventice Announces Development of Mobile Health Application to Prevent and Improve Diagnosis of Skin Allergies

ROCHESTER, Minn., Feb. 25, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Preventice, Inc., a leading developer of mobile health systems, announced today that it will collaborate with Mayo Clinic to introduce health applications based on cloud computing and mobile phone technology. The first application from this collaboration is the CARD System. Licensed from Mayo Clinic, the CARD System gives physicians and patients instant access to information about chemicals, preservatives and fragrances in skin care products that cause allergic skin reactions. The CARD System helps patients find safe products while shopping, track their allergic reactions, and electronically share information with their physician.

Millions of Americans suffer from skin allergies. A National Ambulatory Medical Care survey conducted in 1995 estimated that 8.4 million people visit their doctor because of skin allergies. Meanwhile, allergic reactions to skin care and cosmetic products were the second most frequent dermatologic diagnosis.

The Preventice CARD System-which stands for Contact Allergen Replacement Database-is the world's most recognized contact allergy system, containing more than 8,100 known ingredients found in more than 7,000 commercial skin care products. Developed by Mayo Clinic in 1999, CARD was originally distributed to American Contact Dermatitis Society members, but is now available to physicians and patients worldwide for the first time. Physicians can access the CARD System through a Preventice web application and it will be available to consumers through the Apple iTunes™ App Store in April 2011.

"The Preventice CARD System represents an essential clinical tool for discovering and avoiding skin-care products that cause allergic reactions," said James Yiannias, M.D., Mayo Clinic. "Dermatologists at Mayo Clinic have used the CARD System for years to recommend safe skin care products and have found it typically increases patient compliance and makes patient diagnosis and education more efficient."

According to Jon Otterstatter, co-founder, president and CEO of Preventice, the mobile version of the CARD System includes:

• Journaling capability to track reactions and share data with physicians
• Ability to attach photos to improve diagnosis and treatment
• Mobile phone bar-code scanning to identify safe products while shopping
• Personalized lists
• Patient notification of product formulation changes
• Mobile browsing of interactive shopping lists
• Ability to print shopping lists from a web browser

"We're thrilled to collaborate with Mayo Clinic on the use of smart phone technology for health care, starting with the CARD System. The CARD System is a real-world example of preventive health care in action," said Otterstatter. "CARD mobile improves doctor-patient collaboration with the potential to reduce costs to the health care system. And the combination of Web-based and mobile technology creates an engaging patient experience."

About Preventice

Preventice develops mobile health systems that improve outcomes through prevention, remote diagnosis and patient monitoring. Current applications target prescription medication management, cardiac care, sleep apnea, diabetes management, and migraine headache care.

SOURCE Preventice, Inc.