SOMA

Chronic Pain affects over 116 million Americans. Recent neuroscientific studies show that the transition from acute to chronic pain is accompanied by a shift from peripheral (body-centered) to central (brain-centered) processing. This indicates that chronic pain might be learned or expected, and it may be generated by the brain in a top-down fashion — even in the absence of nociceptive input from the body. As a result, pharmacology alone is often inadequate for managing chronic pain. Cognitive behavioral therapy options often have limited availability, have a high clinical staffing burden, require frequent clinic visits, and are financially prohibitive. A smartphone app such as SOMA that can simultaneously provide dynamic symptom tracking to serve as an early diagnostic test for Chronic Pain, assess the efficacy of different treatments, and also provide cognitive interventions in a personalized manner in a low-cost subscription model, is an attractive solution to both hospitals and insurers.