New Freespira® Study Shows Nearly 80% of Patients are Panic Attack Free at One Year Post-Treatment

DANVILLE, Calif., Feb. 22, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Palo Alto Health Sciences, Inc. (PAHS), developer of the Freespira® at-home treatment for panic attacks and other symptoms of panic disorder, today announced the results of a new multi-center clinical trial which demonstrated compelling effectiveness across a broad spectrum of patient demographics and symptom severity. Results were published in the peer-reviewed journal Applied Psychophysiology and Biofeedback.

Authorized by a licensed healthcare provider and completed in the convenience and privacy of the patient's own home, the Freespira treatment is both simple and effective.  With only two 17-minute sessions a day over a four-week period, most patients reduced or eliminated panic attacks and maintained that improvement for at least 12 months.  

Principal Investigator David Tolin Ph.D., Director of Anxiety Disorders Center, The Institute of Living, and Adjunct Professor of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine said, "Freespira is a validated new treatment option for patients with panic disorder.  It is simple, effective, and drug-free, and the results are durable for at least 12 months after treatment is completed.  This latest study confirms the results seen in a prior study at a single academic center and, importantly, demonstrates that the Freespira treatment is equally effective and safe when provided in the community setting."

PAHS CEO Debra Reisenthel commented, "Freespira offers patients suffering from the debilitating symptoms of panic attacks a safe, effective, at-home and drug-free option.  At one year, the clear majority of patients in the study are living panic attack free."

The published paper can be viewed for free here
http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10484-017-9354-4

The Cost of Panic.

Panic attacks affect millions in the U.S., impacting their lives in profoundly negative ways, and especially impairing their ability to work. Panic attacks are often misinterpreted as a serious medical event such as a heart attack, which leads to excess emergency room visits, tests, medication use, and doctor visits.  Given the five-fold increase in annual use of healthcare resources by these patients, fewer panic attacks are expected to lead to reduced medical utilization and costs.

About Freespira.

Freespira is an FDA-cleared, drug-free, four-week at-home treatment for panic attacks and other panic symptoms. Treatment is completed under the supervision of a licensed healthcare provider. Freespira is clinically proven to reduce or eliminate panic attacks and other symptoms of panic disorder, a mental health condition in which debilitating anxiety leads to life-altering avoidance behaviors. Individuals with panic often chronically hyperventilate, even when not experiencing a panic attack. This abnormal breathing pattern has been shown to exacerbate attacks. Freespira works by training the patient to stabilize their respiration rate and exhaled carbon dioxide levels, which reduces or eliminates panic attacks.  This clinical trial demonstrated that at 12-months post-treatment 79% of treated patients were free of panic attacks and 82% had symptom reduction.

About Palo Alto Health Sciences, Inc.

Palo Alto Health Sciences, Inc. is a privately held Silicon Valley digital therapeutic company at the forefront of revolutionizing behavioral healthcare with evidence-based, non-invasive, drug-free solutions. Their first product, Freespira, is an FDA-cleared treatment for individuals suffering from panic attacks and panic symptoms. In the United States, over 6.7 million adults annually suffer from panic disorder; panic attacks affect a total of 27 million adults in the U.S. every year and are a common component of other anxiety disorders.

Freespira is commercially available throughout the U.S. and is currently being evaluated by Anthem and Highmark Health in regional Quality Improvement Programs to assess Freespira's impact in reducing the elevated medical costs of treating patients with panic disorder. To learn more, visit http://www.freespira.com or contact [email protected].

SOURCE Palo Alto Health Sciences

Related Links

http://freespira.com