Bayer launches app to tackle nail fungus
This article was originally published in OTC Bulletin & The Rose Sheet
Bayer Consumer Health has launched a mobile app to help Germans better treat their nail fungus with the firm’s Canesten Extra system.
Combining the app – which features helpful information, videos and a reminder function – with Canesten Extra, the company said, would help people suffering from nail fungus treat their “annoying” condition “quickly and effectively”.
“For mild-to-moderate nail fungus, using the Canesten Extra system was the quickest way to treat the problem,” Bayer claimed, “but adhering to the treatment course was crucial, and the app can help people do that.”
The Canesten Extra system consists of a urea-containing cream, 15 hygiene patches and a spatula. For two weeks, the user applies the ointment to the infected nail, covers with a plaster and leaves it there for 24 hours. After removing the plaster, the patient uses the spatula to start removing the affected areas of the nail.
Once the initial two-week treatment period is completed, the patient then treats the nail for a further four weeks by applying the remaining Canesten Extra cream to the problem area, enabling the product’s active ingredient bifonazole to reach the nail bed and eliminate the fungus pathogen thoroughly.
Developed by Bayer in collaboration with digital publisher Springer Medizin, the app guided users through the six-week treatment course, the company explained.
Users start by choosing a picture from a gallery to provide information on what stage the condition is at. The app then calculates when a person should be applying Canesten Extra and sets reminders to prompt them to keep to their treatment schedule.
At each stage of treatment, the company said, the app provided users with motivational messages to ensure compliance, such as “the countdown is on, by day 10 the affected parts of the nail are usually removed” and “press the tube, it is almost done!”.
By doing this, Bayer said, the app acted like a treatment coach, providing motivation, information and even videos to show people how to use the product properly.
The app also included a frequently asked questions section, the firm pointed out, which answered queries about nail fungus – how it was contracted and also how to avoid re-infection – and the Canesten Extra treatment regime.
“Many patients still believe that combating nail fungus is a months-long procedure, where, for example, a nail polish needs to be applied every day,” Bayer pointed out.
This was too time consuming for most people, the company claimed, adding that 95% of consumers wanted a treatment that offered visible progress after just two weeks.
The Canesten Extra mobile app is available for free via the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.