Motion sickness wearable to be sold at Good Neighbor Pharmacy

HORSHAM, Pa. — Reliefband Technologies LLC, maker of the Reliefband wearable device for motion sickness, has entered a distribution partnership with AmerisourceBergen Corp.

Reliefband said Tuesday that the partnership enables AmerisourceBergen to provide the clinically proven Reliefband technology to retail pharmacies and health care providers nationwide.

The watchlike device will be available over-the-counter at AmerisourceBergen’s Good Neighbor Pharmacy locations to customers seeking relief from symptoms of motion sickness and morning sickness relief, Reliefband said. The Good Neighbor independent pharmacy network encompasses about 4,800 locations.

Reliefband is designed to provide fast relief from nausea and vomiting associated with travel (car, plane, boat and train), amusement park rides, virtual reality gaming, vertigo and pregnancy, among other situations.

Worn on the underside of the wrist, the device uses the body’s neural pathways to naturally regulate the mechanisms causing nausea without drugs.

When activated, the unit emits gentle pulses through the skin that stimulate the median nerve at the P6 pressure point located on the underside of the wrist. That generates a signal that travels through the central nervous system to the higher emetic center of the brain, Reliefband said. The signals modulate the neural pathways between the brain and the stomach, via the vagus nerve, to relieve nausea.

The company reported that the hospital-tested therapy works as well as a leading prescription anti-emetic medication, without side effects such as drowsiness or constipation.

About 10% of the population suffers from motion sickness on a monthly basis, with 5% suffering more than once a week, according to Reliefband.

“Today’s health care environment necessitates a partner that has the size, reach and scale to deliver a product to patients at the right time,” stated Nick Spring, chief executive officer of Reliefband Technologies. “This new relationship will significantly strengthen and grow our business, increasing our ability to provide innovative solutions to our customers.”