Nordic Life Science 1
CAREERS A NEW ECOSYSTEM IS TAKING SHAPE. T E X T
by EL L EN R . D EL I S I O S SWEDISH CLINICIANS treating large numbers of asthma patients, Henrik Ljungberg and Björn Nordlund often spent time reviewing the multiple prescriptions and directives patients received from different providers after flare-ups. “Often when an asthma patient is not doing well, their doctor or emergency doctor want to try something new or prescribe a new inhaler,” explained Ljungberg, a pediatric pulmonologist. “Patients end up with lots of inhalers but don’t have the right decision-making tools for how and when to use them. I saw a large number of asthma patients with very similar characteristics, but I had to spend a lot of time with each patient helping them to sort out what information that they had been given previously was actually important to them, and how to act on it.” A COMPANY AND AN APP Ljungberg and Nordlund, a nurse specializing in pediatrics and a research group leader in the area of asthma and allergic diseases at Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, founded their company MediTuner in 2014 and developed AsthmaTuner, an app patients download on their phones. AsthmaTuner enables patients to test their lung function and report findings to a clinician. The data is analyzed and patients receive treatment information based on their current condition. The treatment plans are based on international guidelines. The app also allows patients to keep track of their condition, symptoms and treatments. NORDICLIFESCIENCE.ORG 69