Novartis (VTX: NOVN) has launched its FocalView app, an ophthalmic digital research platform created with ResearchKit, the company announced on Wednesday.

The app aims to provide patients with the opportunity to participate in ophthalmology clinical trials from their home, allowing researchers to track disease progression by collecting real-time, self-reported data directly from consenting patients.

It is hoped that this app will reduce barriers to adoption and lead to a more nuanced understanding of ophthalmic diseases and, potentially, accelerate the development of novel treatments.

Patients will be able to complete numerous assignments and gain feedback on their visual function, while researchers could be provided with a greater volume of real-world, patient-reported data, creating more flexible and accessible clinical trial designs.

FocalView is now available to download from the App Store in the US. Users will be required to give their consent to contribute to research data before they can interact with the tool. Novartis plans to launch the app in additional markets in the future.