Intelligent Ingestible Sensor Systems for Medication Adherence: Clinical Applications, Technological Innovations, and Ethical Challenges

Digital pill systems represent a transformative advancement in digital medicine, combining pharmaceuticals with ingestible sensors to monitor medication adherence in real time. Medication nonadherence remains a significant global healthcare challenge, contributing to poor therapeutic outcomes, increased hospitalizations, and higher healthcare costs. Digital pills integrate ingestible sensors, wearable receivers, and mobile health applications to provide objective confirmation of medication ingestion. This review aims to provide a comprehensive overview of digital pill technology, its mechanism of action, clinical applications, advantages, limitations, regulatory considerations, and ethical implications. Evidence from recent clinical studies demonstrates that digital pills improve adherence in chronic diseases, psychiatric disorders, infectious diseases, and post-transplant care. However, challenges such as cost, patient privacy, data security, and accessibility remain barriers to widespread adoption. Future developments are expected to include artificial intelligence integration, enhanced sensor miniaturization, and improved patient-centered healthcare delivery. Digital pill systems have the potential to revolutionize medication management and personalized medicine if implemented responsibly and ethically.