Forget Hype – Digital Therapeutic Data Show the Category Can be Held to High Clinical Standards

The announcement from Click Therapeutics that its digital therapeutic CT-132 met its primary endpoint in the ReMMi-D pivotal trial is a key development for migraine treatment and the digital health community. The study’s results point to the potential of digital therapeutics as a complement to existing medications and as a scientifically validated option capable of improving patient outcomes in complex conditions like migraines.

Scientific Progress for Patients and a Category

At the core of the ReMMi-D trial was the evaluation of CT-132, a prescription digital therapeutic, for the preventive treatment of episodic migraine. The study included 568 participants and was designed with the scientific rigor traditionally associated with pharmacological interventions. The results were compelling: patients using CT-132 experienced a reduction during three-monthly migraine days by the end of the 12-week treatment, a key metric in migraine management.

More than reducing the frequency of migraines, CT-132 showed improvements in patient-reported outcomes related to quality of life and disability, such as the Migraine-Specific Quality-of-Life Questionnaire and the Migraine Disability Assessment. These metrics matter because migraine is a neurological condition that disrupts life activities, affecting employment and social relationships. For the millions of people who have unpredictable and disabling migraines, improvement can have profound quality of life.

According to a statement by Shaheen Lakhan, MD, PhD, FAAN, chief medical officer of Click Therapeutics:“Click has developed and evaluated a first-in-class digital migraine preventive therapeutic, CT-132, in 2 separate clinical studies to demonstrate a reduction in monthly migraine days, the gold standard measure. We look forward to advancing our FDA Breakthrough Designated asset through regulatory clearance and, if successful, offering a new therapeutic option that can be delivered to any eligible patient with a smartphone, meaningfully enhancing access to care.”

Building on Existing Treatment Possibilities

Migraine remains one of the most debilitating neurological conditions, affecting more than 37 million Americans. Despite pharmacological treatment advances, many people still find their lives shaped by frequent, unexpected, debilitating episodes. Existing medications can be effective, yet they don’t work for everyone and at every instance.  Some patients struggle with adherence, side effects, or simply the anxiety around consistent relief.

CT-132 holds the potential for a new kind of intervention. Delivered by a smartphone, this digital therapeutic is designed to work alongside patients’ existing medications, augmenting their current treatments rather than replacing them. Notably, the trial was designed to evaluate CT-132 in patients already using standard migraine medications. Data from the trial points to the efficacy of CT-132 as a stand-alone intervention and suggests an additive benefit when combined with existing FDA-approved pharmacological treatments.

This approach is key to conditions like migraine, where no single treatment is universally effective. For many people, managing migraine calls for a combination of therapies—some interventional, others pharmacological, and still some behavioral. CT-132’s success demonstrates that digital therapeutics have the potential to be additive to that combination, helping people regain control over their condition.

A Potential Step Forward for Digital Health

The results of this trial are even more noteworthy for an entire sector because CT-132 is one of the first digital therapeutics to be evaluated with the same rigorous standards typically applied to pharmaceutical interventions. The randomized, double-masked, controlled study design is a gold standard in clinical research, and Click Therapeutics has brought that level of precision to the digital health category.

Stan Kachnowski, PhD, MPA, founder of HITLAB and a prominent figure in health informatics, has also echoed the importance of this transformation, stating previously that “The convergence of digital therapeutics and traditional healthcare is one of the most promising avenues for improving patient outcomes. Clinical data helps substantiate the effectiveness of digital interventions, paving the way for broader adoption in complex diseases like migraine.”

Digital health has often been touted for its innovation and potential, but the field has faced great skepticism around its ability to deliver scientifically proven results. The CT-132 trial is an answer to those on the sidelines, demonstrating how digital therapeutics—with ample clinical data—can improve people’s outcomes. The nearly 100% completion rate of daily tasks in the trial speaks to the potential for sustained patient engagement, an essential factor in the long-term success of any therapeutic intervention.

Recent FDA guidance on Prescription Drug Use-Related Software (PDURS) opens the door to a new treatment category combining digital and pharmacological interventions. The data from CT-132 adds weight to this model, opening the wide door to showing how digital therapeutics can support existing treatments and may offer added measurable benefits.

What This May Mean for Consumers

The implications of this study are significant for people and physicians who treat migraines. Beyond diagnosis, migraine is more than a medical condition—its constant presence dictates when and how people can work, study, and socialize. The Click Therapeutics data suggest a new avenue of relief that is readily accessible and shows the potential to reduce the burden of migraine in daily life.

In digital health, data is key.  Julien de Salaberry, CEO and founder of Galen Growth has often emphasized: “Data is the defining difference in how we can transform digital health into a category with the same rigor and trust as traditional biopharma.” This sentiment captures the critical role that data plays in not just validating the efficacy of digital therapeutics but also in driving their adoption and integration into mainstream healthcare​.”

Moreover, the trial was designed to be used alongside existing medications, which could assist people who feel they have already exhausted their treatment options. This is important for those who experience ongoing migraine symptoms despite the use of preventive, newer migraine medications. Digital therapeutics with demonstrated data may provide an added layer of treatment that doesn’t require the introduction of more drugs or drug-related side effects.

Future of Migraine Treatment and Digital Health

This trial’s success is more than a win for Click Therapeutics—it signals what’s possible in digital health. In demonstrating that a digital intervention can demonstrate clinical outcomes in a condition as debilitating as migraine, CT-132 may have set the bar for digital therapeutics and offers private and public payers reason to become excited about the category.

As more digital therapeutics enter the clinical landscape, their ability to integrate with and enhance traditional treatments will be crucial to their success. This trial shows that digital solutions can do more than provide “feel-good” supplementary support—they can drive measurable improvement in patient health. The data are essential to showing that hype cannot be a clinical option; digital health must deliver high evidence before being considered a serious patient option.

By setting this new precedent for clinical validation, Click Therapeutics has contributed to a more significant shift in how we think about digital health. It’s not just about innovation for its own sake—it’s about how technology can change how we manage health when designed with scientific rigor and people’s needs in mind.