Lilly is partnering with a US consumer digital health company for real-world research that it hopes will allow patients with diabetes to better understand their condition.

The pharma firm will work with Livongo to develop predictive and prescriptive recommendations for patients through a combination of real-world studies and claims data.

Livongo combines consumer health tech, personalised recommendations and real-time support to help people manage chronic conditions, starting with diabetes.

The companies will focus on remote self-management education and support, the drivers underlying healthy behaviour and how patients can remain actively involved in their health.

Sherry Martin, vice president of medical affairs at Lilly Diabetes, said: "Collaborating with Livongo is an important step in our research efforts. We hope that our combined expertise will play a key role in empowering people with diabetes to better manage their condition."

Livongo, which wants to redesign chronic disease management, counts four of the seven largest US health plans and over 200 employers among its clients.

Chief medical officer Jennifer Schneider said the company’s work with Lilly would have a direct impact on the lives of Livongo members.

She added: “Livongo uses reinforcement learning to create customised and actionable insights that guide people to better manage their diabetes. The knowledge we gain from these studies will be incorporated into our diabetes management platform to help drive better health outcomes for our members."

Lilly said it planned to publish the results of their collaborative research studies to further advance diabetes care.

The company’s deal follow in the wake of last month’s agreement with US software and analytics firm Rimidi to boost an in-house diabetes solution it is working on.

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