Constant Therapy

Introduction

Constant Therapy is a developer of clinically proven cognitive, language, and speech therapy apps. The applications run on tablet computers and are used by speech-language pathologists and their patients to provide ongoing rehabilitation services to stroke and traumatic brain injury (TBI) patients, or people with aphasia, dementia, and other speech-language disorders. Research has shown that patients using the Constant Therapy technology get six times the amount of therapy compared to traditional therapy in a clinic.^[1]

Mobile speech therapy apps eliminate important barriers to continued rehabilitation by providing effective and evidence-based therapy through an app that allowing patients to practice at their convenience, while continuing to receive feedback from their clinician.

History

Constant Therapy was founded in 2013, by Dr. Veera Anantha, Prof. Swathi Kiran, Mahendra Advani and Ehsan Dadgar. While head of the Aphasia Research Laboratory at Boston University, Dr. Kiran recognized that patients with cognitive, language and speech disorders could benefit from an application that combined technology with communication therapy. Understanding that the human brain can improve performance with continued practice, Constant Therapy licensed a library of science-based tasks from Boston University and integrated them into the mobile app. The app now contains more than 60,000 tasks and as of April 2016, Constant Therapy has processed over 20 million patient completed tasks.

In 2015, Keith Cooper joined as CEO.

In March 2016, Constant Therapy raised a $2 million Series A round, lead by Golden Seeds, with additional investors including Kapor Capital, Launchpad Venture Group, Pond Capital, and Community Health Network of Connecticut.^[2]

Awards

In 2014, Constant Therapy was named a winner in the TiE50 Awards Program in the Life Sciences category.^[3]

In 2015, Constant Therapy received the AARP Health Innovation Consumer Choice Award at the AARP Life@50+ National Event and Expo,^[4] and the American Heart Association’s Health Tech Scientific Sessions People Choice Award for delivering personalized therapy with advanced data analytics.^[5]

In November 2015, Constant Therapy was awarded an investment of $100,000 from Village Capital and Global Health and Social Innovation Capital Partners (GHSICP), selected by peer companies participating in a three month acceleration program run by Village Capital in partnership with The Hitachi Foundation.^[6]

Clinical Research

Several research studies using Constant Therapy have been published.

In 2014, Kiran et. al. conducted a study investigating the feasibility of developing effective individualized treatment workflows using an iPad-based software platform for patients with brain damage.^[7]

In 2015, Kiran and researchers from Boston University’s Department of Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences and Boston University’s School of Public Health’s Department of Biostatistics published research titled “Effectiveness of an impairment-based individualized treatment program using an iPad-based software platform.”^[8] An analysis of fifty-one individuals with aphasia resulting from stroke or brain injury used Constant Therapy’s iPad application to practice tasks over a ten week period. Experimental patients completed more time overall than control patients, and showed more significant and positive changes in their standardized tests. Study results provided evidence that patients can effectively receive systematic, structured iPad-based and individualized therapy.

In a study tracking the recovery of a stroke survivor with aphasia, researchers were able to determine that the individual suffered a second stroke, detected by changing performance patterns in his therapy tasks. The study demonstrated the ability to detect a recurrent stroke before diagnosis, by recognizing changes in language and cognitive performance.^[9]

References

1. "Start-Ups Give A Louder Voice to Patients". healthegy.com. Retrieved 2016-04-11.
2. "BU Spinout Constant Therapy Gets $2M for Speech and Brain Rehab App | Xconomy". Xconomy. Retrieved 2016-04-11.
3. "Constant Therapy Wins TiE50 Award; Its iPad Solution Helps People With Traumatic Brain Injury, Stroke, Aphasia and Learning Disabilities". Reuters. 2014-05-20. Retrieved 2016-04-11.
4. "Constant Therapy Wins AARP’s Consumer Choice Award at AARP’s National Event & Expo". Reuters. 2015-05-19. Retrieved 2016-04-11.
5. "Startups compete in Health Tech competition". aha-365.ascendeventmedia.com. Retrieved 2016-04-11.
6. "$100,000 Awarded to Constant Therapy and InRFood for Health Business Solutions". Village Capital. Retrieved 2016-04-11.
7. Roches, Carrie; Balachandran, Isabel; Ascenso, Elsa; Kiran, Swathi. "Development of an Impairment-Based Individualized Treatment Workflow Using an iPad-Based Software Platform". Seminars in Speech and Language 35 (01): 038–050. doi:10.1055/s-0033-1362995.
8. "Effectiveness of an impairment-based individualized treatment program using an iPad-based software platform" (PDF). Effectiveness of an impairment-based individualized treatment program using an iPad-based software platform. Boston University. 2015. Retrieved 04/08/2016. Check date values in: |access-date= (help)
9. "Detecting small and large fluctuations in language and cognitive performance: a longitudinal rehabilitation case study" (PDF). Detecting small and large fluctuations in language and cognitive performance: a longitudinal rehabilitation case study. International Journal of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation. May 23, 2014. Retrieved 04/08/2016. Check date values in: |access-date= (help)