Adherium's Hailie® Smartinhaler® Chosen for Groundbreaking iCARE Study: Significant Adherence, Consistent Outcomes, and Global Health System Savings

MELBOURNE, Australia, Sept. 16, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Preliminary results from a groundbreaking and transformational real-world study by Adherium Limited (ASX:ADR), a global leader in connected respiratory health solutions through its Hailie^® Smartinhaler^® technology – together with research from Intermountain Health, a leading nonprofit health system based in Salt Lake City and CareCentra, an AI-driven prevention-as-a-service remote monitoring platform – has resulted in significant positive clinical outcomes, including record adherence rates and consistent engagement with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and asthma patients.

Researchers say results of the iCARE study ('the Study') are promising and may redefine what is possible in COPD and asthma care.

The iCARE study included the supply of 4,000 Hailie^® Smartinhalers^®, supporting up to 2,500 COPD and asthma patients across five Intermountain Health facilities over two years. This underscores both the scale of the program and the early commercial adoption of Adherium's suite of Hailie^® devices.

"By generating actionable patient data, including biometrics from Adherium's Hailie^® Smartinhaler^® technology, the iCARE study demonstrates breakthrough adherence, unprecedented patient persistence, reduced hospitalizations, and significant potential cost savings laying the foundation for a scalable, value-based care model with global commercial relevance," said Adherium Chief Executive Officer, Dawn Bitz.

Analysis of the nearly 850 Intermountain Health patients enrolled in the iCARE program for the Study, of which more than 9 out of 10 remain active participants, demonstrated exciting results.  Among important findings, adherence was evaluated in a subset of patients with connected controller inhalers and at least 30 days of inhalation data.

Across this group, the typical patient used their inhaler as prescribed nearly two-thirds of the time, far higher than the roughly one-in-five times typically reported in these populations, making this one of the strongest independent, real-world adherence outcomes recorded in chronic respiratory care.  Nearly four in ten patients reached the critical threshold of greater than 80% adherence, a level long associated with nearly 50% fewer respiratory attacks. This closes one of the largest historical gaps in respiratory management unlocking value for patients, providers, payers, and investors alike.

Separately, analysis of nearly 700 patients demonstrated clinically meaningful improvements across multiple dimensions of respiratory care including reductions in inpatient admissions, 30-day readmissions, and average length of stay; lower reliance on rescue medications; resulting in decreases in overall cost of care.

The iCARE program also demonstrated 54% persistence ("stickiness") among active users of the CareCentra remote monitoring platform, calculated over a 14-month period. Engagement tended to be highest in older patients, who are the least likely to adopt or sustain digital health interventions. These patients also represent the highest-cost segment of the healthcare system, resulting in most hospitalizations and readmissions.

Compared to the 30–45% persistence typically reported in behavior-change programs, iCARE's stickiness results indicate that even the most vulnerable patients are consistently engaging, highlighting the unique impact of iCARE.

Final long-term loyalty data will be released in due course, but these statistically significant persistence results already serve as a leading indicator of iCARE's ability to sustain engagement over time and deliver enduring value for patients, payers, and health systems.

"These interim results represent one of the strongest demonstrations yet, that digital health can deliver both measurable patient impact and health system value at scale," said Bitz. "By combining innovative connected inhaler technology with CareCentra's AI-driven behavioral engagement, we are not only improving adherence but also validating a sustainable, value-based care model. This is the kind of data that moves digital health from promise to proven impact.

"At the same time, outpatient encounters are increasing, reflecting earlier, proactive interventions that prevent costly crisis-level exacerbations," said Bitz.

Together, these shifts demonstrate iCARE's potential to fundamentally bend the cost curve in respiratory disease management—an outcome highly aligned with payer priorities in both U.S. and Australian markets.

"For patients living with chronic respiratory disease, what happens between clinic visits often determines whether their condition stabilizes or escalates," said Intermountain Health Research Director for Respiratory Care Clinical Services, Kim Bennion. "Through the iCARE program with continuous respiratory monitoring and nudging technology, we are giving our patients the tools and support to stay on therapy, avoid hospitalizations, and maintain a higher quality of life. These early results affirm the power of technology-enabled care to extend our reach beyond the hospital and clinic walls."

The Study also presents opportunities for deeper analysis by condition type (COPD vs. asthma), patient severity (e.g., prior hospitalizations, GINA or GOLD classifications), environmental and weather-related factors, and socioeconomic influences on participation and outcomes, said Bennion.

With these interim results, iCARE demonstrates not only its ability to improve patient outcomes but also its potential to scale as a commercially viable, value-based care platform across U.S., Australian, and global health systems.

A more comprehensive dataset will be released later this year, including detailed breakdowns by disease category, patient severity, and payor type.

SOURCE Adherium Ltd