Eisai to Launch Digital Too "Cogmate" in Taiwan and Hong Kong for Self-Assessment of Brain Performance (Brain Health)

Jan 13, 2022 13:26 JST

Source: Eisai

TOKYO, Jan 13, 2022 - (JCN Newswire) - Eisai Co., Ltd. announced today that its Taiwanese subsidiary Eisai Taiwan Inc. and Hong Kong subsidiary Eisai (Hong Kong) Co., Ltd. have launched "CogMateTM", a digital tool (non-medical device) for self-assessment of brain performance (brain health). In Taiwan and Hong Kong, the both subsidiaries target corporate customers such as municipalities and corporations in the sales. This will be the first release of "CogMate" in the Asian region (excluding Japan). In the near future, "CogMate" will be launched in countries such as Singapore.

"CogMate" is a multilingual overseas model of "NouKNOW" (product name in Japan), a digital tool (non-medical device) for self-assessment of brain performance, developed and distributed by Eisai using the cognitive function test "Cogstate Brief BatteryTM" (CBB) created by Cogstate, Ltd. (Headquarters: Australia). For the Asian region, "CogMate" is equipped with multilingual functions such as Chinese (Traditional Chinese) and English.

"CogMate" is conducted through a simple card test using a PC, tablet device or smartphone to quantitatively measure brain performance in four checking items evaluating psychomotor function, attention, learning and memory, and working memory. Users can self-assess and in a short time frame (approx. 15 minutes), enabling regular assessments in instances such as daily life and health checkups. On the screen showing the measurement results, a score (brain performance index (BPI)) - as a measurement of quantified brain performance aspects such as memorization, cognition, and decision - appears along with lifestyle advice for maintaining brain performance.

In Asia, with the rapid aging of the population in recent years, the total number of those living with dementia across the region is expected to increase year by year. With regard to dementia, in addition to medical expenses, the burden on the family and the social burden are heavy, which has become a social issue.

With the launch of "CogMate", Eisai will promote self-check and prevention activities for the maintenance and improvement of brain performance toward constructing an ecosystem to realize supporting people living with and preventing dementia in Asia. Eisai will continue to focus on delivering solutions to The People, including not only those living with dementia but also society at large, to remove the anxiety associated with dementia.

About "CogMate" / "NouKNOW" (pronounced "NOH-NOH")

Eisai holds the rights for exclusive development and commercialization worldwide, both medical and non-medical, for all cognitive function tests including "Cogstate Brief Battery" (CBB) created by Cogstate, Ltd. ("Cogstate"). CBB is a digital tool with abundant usage record and high evidence, which enables self-assess of cognitive function. It consists of four items that evaluate psychomotor function, attention, working memory, and learning and memory. CBB is used in more than 55 countries around the world, and also adopted in research through industry-government-academia collaboration in Japan and overseas. CBB is capable to detect the cognitive decline group with a high probability of sensitivity(1) 80.4% and specificity(2) 84.7% in the memory score calculated based on checking items to evaluate working memory and learning and memory.(3)

In the United States, Europe, Australia, and New Zealand, CBB has been developed by Cogstate with the function of providing expert assessment feedback for healthcare professional use and has been approved as a medical device with the name "CognigramTM". It is being used by doctors and other healthcare professionals in examination and diagnosis of MCI (Mild Cognitive Impairment) and dementia.

In Japan, Eisai developed the cognitive function test as a tool (non-medical device) for self-assessment of brain performance (brain health) to create an opportunity for a re-consideration of daily lifestyle as well as greater preventive measures, and has distributed it with the name "NouKNOW" since March in 2020. "CogMate" is a multilingual overseas model of "NouKNOW".
For more information about "NouKNOW", please visit https://nouknow.jp (Japanese only).

(1) An index that indicates whether a person can be properly detected as having a problem.
(2) An index that indicates whether a person who has no problem can be properly detected as having no problem.
(3) Maruff, P., Lim, Y. Y., Darby, D., Ellis, K. A., Pietrzak, R. H., Snyder P. J., Bush, A. I., Szoeke, C., Schembri, A., Ames,
D., Masters, C. L., & the AIBL Research Group (2013). Clinical utility of the Cogstate brief battery in identifying cognitive impairment in mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer's disease. BMC Pharmacology & Toxicology, 1:30

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Sectors: BioTech