Ethypharm ready to bring to patients world-leading digital therapies for depression and addiction

SAINT-CLOUD, France, April 6, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Ethypharm announces today that it has acquired exclusive rights for two CE-marked digital therapies, deprexis and vorvida, developed by GAIA AG (GAIA),  a global leader in digital therapeutics. With these innovative clinically-proven digital therapies, Ethypharm strengthens its product offering to support patients and healthcare providers in its core area of the Central Nervous System (CNS) where there are significant unmet needs.

30 million European individuals suffer from depression. The burden of mental disorders is growing, with significant impacts on health and major social and economic consequences. The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic is leading to an increase in cases of depression and alcohol use disorders (AUD). In parallel, to address the pandemic, digital health technologies  have been adopted at a fast pace to help maintain an appropriate care of patients.

In this context and using its expertise in CNS, and more specifically in pain, addiction and depression, Ethypharm has identified that, beyond conventional medicines, innovative and reliable therapeutic solutions could offer new alternatives to treat patients and support healthcare professionals currently facing unmet needs.

deprexis is a web-based digital therapy medical device to help patients manage their symptoms of depression and one of the world's most researched digital treatments. vorvida is helping to reduce the risks and damages caused by problematic alcohol consumption. This digital therapy has proven clinical efficacy in the treatment of bothersome or harmful alcohol consumption including diagnosed alcohol use disorder (AUD).

Ethypharm acquires exclusive rights for deprexis in 4 European countries: France, the United Kingdom, Italy and Spain. vorvida is first licenced for France, with rights to future extensions in other European countries. Under the terms of the agreement with GAIA, Ethypharm will ensure the marketing and sales of these two digital therapeutics within their licenced territories.

Digital therapeutics will be a key lever to Ethypharm's growth. According to Market Data Forecast, the European digital therapeutics market was valued at US$ 612 million in 2020 and is forecasted to grow at a compounded annual growth rate of 21.4% between 2021 to 2026.

"Mental disorders are a worldwide major burden on people, society and the economy. With COVID-19 and associated growing concerns on mental health, we wanted to provide innovative treatment options for patients and their physicians. These disruptive digital therapies have proven their efficacy and therefore, fit extremely well with Ethypharm's ambition to improve people's lives. The partnership with GAIA, a pioneer in digital health, is the illustration of the ability of Ethypharm to listen to unmet needs and either to develop or  find the optimal partner to answer them." said Bertrand Deluard, CEO of Ethypharm.