Feasibility and Acceptability of Google Glass for Emergency Department Dermatology Consultations

Abstract

that approximately 20 to 30 NMEs were approved each year from 2000 through 2013.Topical NMEs are developed at a much lower rate (0.9 NMEs per year).These findings are consistent with prior studies 5 illustrating the underrepresentation of all drugs developed for primarily dermatological uses.Dermatological illnesses are not often fatal and may be considered lower priority by policymakers.Priority designations are assigned by the US Food and Drug Administration to new drugs that represent significant improvements over existing options and command more resource investment and regulatory attention.Only 5 total topical applications and 1 topical NME were given the priority review designation compared with 45% of all pharmaceutical and biological NMEs from 2000 through 2009. 6 Beyond being considered lower priority, traditional metrics of blood and urine drug levels often do not apply to topical therapies.The lack of accepted surrogate end points may explain why the median approval time for topical medications is comparable with oral and intravenous therapies despite representing a lower systemic risk.Given these regulatory challenges, the low number of active companies with the necessary expertise to develop topical therapeutics likely contributes to the continued high cost and low availability of these drugs.Prior studies on medical innovation of devices, small molecules, and biotechnology suggest a multifaceted approach to spur future development. 7 Strategies most likely to succeed include continued research funding to study diseases that are likely to be responsive to topical therapeutics and increased collaboration between academic and industry professionals.In the short term, adoption of more surrogate end points reduces the regulatory burden and may encourage companies to invest more resources in this underserved area.