Merz Therapeutics and S3 Connected Health Pioneer New Digital Health Solution, iFlexo, for People Living with Post- Stroke Spasticity

Dublin/Frankfurt, 19 November, 2024 – Merz Therapeutics launches iFlexo, a personalized digital solution aimed at enhancing rehabilitation for people with post-stroke spasticity as part of its ongoing commitment to supporting stroke survivors.

The app, developed in collaboration with S3 Connected Health, provides targeted exercises and rehabilitation programs specifically aimed at improving mobility for those with mild to moderate spasticity. By offering guided routines, iFlexo aims to help stroke survivors regain independence and improve their overall quality of life. Merz Therapeutics is the first and only neurotoxins pharmaceutical company to offer a platform to support self-rehabilitation.

iFlexo, developed and operated on S3 Connected Health’s digital health platform Affinial, was released in August 2024 and is available for iOS and Android in France. Developing iFlexo on Affinial enabled the creation of a differentiated user experience optimized for poststroke patients. An accelerated time to market of just five months was achieved thanks to Affinial’s range of pre-built, customizable digital health services. The Affinial platform enables iFlexo to scale and evolve by addressing current and future compliance, legal, cybersecurity, and regulatory requirements. During the pilot stage in France, it gained significant interest from patients, clinicians, and key opinion leaders.

Dr. Alexandre Bertholon, Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation at Le Clos Champirol, says: “iFlexo is a promising solution in physical rehabilitation, offering a much-needed response to the current challenges in the field. It enables patients to engage in self-rehabilitation at home, focusing on their personal goals. This platform not only supports patients but also enhances efficiency for healthcare professionals by optimizing and extending the results of rehabilitation. It demonstrates how new solutions can improve patient outcomes and make care more effective.”

Up to one-third of stroke survivors experience spasticity, a condition that can severely limit their ability to perform everyday tasks, often leaving them reliant on others.¹ For these individuals, personalized botulinum neurotoxin injection therapy as part of a multimodal approach can improve muscle tone and consequently patient’s mobility and quality of life.²

Merz Therapeutics and S3 Connected Health are committed to providing better outcomes for more patients and are currently working on expanding the solution to more countries, starting in the coming months.

References

¹ Ali, A., McCarthy, A.D., Reeves, M. et al. Sheffield Adaptive Patterned Electrical Stimulation (SHAPES) Therapy for Post Stroke
Arm spasticity: study protocol for a 3-arm, a partially blinded, randomised controlled trial. BMC Neurol 24, 437 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12883-024-03635-x
² Otero-Luis I, Martinez-Rodrigo A, Cavero-Redondo I, Moreno-Herráiz N, Martínez-García I, Saz-Lara A. Effect of Botulinum
Toxin Injections in the Treatment of Spasticity of Different Etiologies: An Umbrella Review. Pharmaceuticals. 2024; 17(3):310. https://doi.org/10.3390/ph17030310

Merz Therapeutics

Merz Therapeutics GmbH is dedicated to improving the lives of patients around the world.
With its relentless research, development, and culture of innovation, Merz Therapeutics strives to serve unmet patient needs and realize better outcomes. Merz Therapeutics seeks to address the unique needs of people who suffer from movement disorders, neurological conditions, liver disease, and other health conditions that severely impact patients’ quality of life.

Merz Therapeutics is headquartered in Frankfurt am Main, Germany and is represented in more than 90 countries, with a North America affiliate based in Raleigh, North Carolina. Merz Therapeutics GmbH is part of the Merz Group, a privately held, family-owned company that has dedicated 115 years to developing innovations that serve unmet patient and customer needs.

For more information, please visit: www.merztherapeutics.com

S3 Connected Health

S3 Connected Health is the specialist digital health partner for life science companies, developing regulated digital health solutions that improve the lives of people with acute and chronic conditions. It has delivered award-winning, regulatory-compliant solutions across 20 therapy areas and in more than 50 countries. The company’s scalable and secure solutions improve disease management, differentiate pharmaceutical products and deliver new therapeutic approaches.

Affinial, S3 Connected Health’s digital health platform, offers partners the opportunity to develop customized digital health solutions tailored to specific patient, device or disease needs. The platform’s pre-built services provide best practice implementation to ensure successful solution adoption and an accelerated time-to-market.

For more information, please visit: www.s3connectedhealth.com

Contact
Merz Therapeutics GmbH
Agnes Tesch
Global Communications
+49 69 1503 2129
agnes.tesch@merz.de

Contact
Grainne O’Reilly
Senior Marketing Manager
S3 Connected Health
+353 1 563 2125
grainne.oreilly@s3connectedhealth.com