Medical advancements over the years have paved way to various treatments intended to target cognitive function disorders. Most of them come in oral pills, but a new project is aimed at eliminating traditional pills for the treatment of cognitive disorders like attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
Managing the disorder will involve a video game, and neuroscientists and game developers are serious about pushing for this kind of treatment.
The game is called "Project Evo," developed by Northern California-based startup Akili.
According to a report from NPR, the game is already in the stage of clinical trials and developers are aiming for it to be approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as an alternative treatment for ADHD that physicians can prescribe.
The game requires players to use cognitive skills that make it possible for people to multitask; this way, patients with ADHD can ignore distractions and help improve on their attention span.
According to Matt Omernick, Akili's executive creative director, video games that get the brain engaged will serve as a "perfect vessel for actually delivering medicine," as stated in the NPR report.
It seems that pharmaceutical firms have also taken notice on the project. It was reported that pharmaceutical giant Pfizer has partnered up with "Project Evo."
Pfizer believes that the game may also help diagnose Alzheimer's disease, which in turn will help improve drug clinical trials for the disorder.
The road to getting FDA's approval won't be an easy journey for "Project Evo." According to insideadhd.org, drugs intended for ADHD are only 70 to 90 percent effective — will a video game surpass that level of drug effectiveness?
Furthermore, if FDA will give its go signal, it could take years before it happens.
According to Tim Chang, managing director at the venture capital firm Mayfield Fund, there are still several clinical tests that need to be passed before FDA grants its approval.
"You could run out of money easily before you get through that," Chang said, in a report from iHealthBeat.
