Nuvectra Corporation out of Plano, Texas, won European MR-conditional approval for its Algovita spinal cord stimulator to be safe while receiving full body MRI scans. The Algovita implant is used to control chronic intractable pain of the trunk and/or limbs. It has 24 independent current sources to stimulate the spinal cord in a variety of […]
Tag: Pain Management
CanGaroo Envelope Now Cleared in U.S. to Protect Implantable Neurostimulators
Aziyo Biologics, out of Silver Springs, Maryland, won FDA clearance for its CanGaroo Envelope to be used with implantable neurostimulators. It has previously been cleared only for encapsulating implantable cardiac devices such as pacemakers and defibrillators. The CanGaroo Envelope is, contrary to what its name may imply, is a porcine extracellular matrix, essentially pig’s tissue with […]
SmartBottle Opioid Administration Device: Interview with Leila Smith of Ethimedix
Ethimedix, a Swiss medical device company, has developed the SmartBottle, a drug administration device for analgesics. The device is a programmable “lockbox” which allows for the controlled administration of single doses of opioid painkillers, reducing the potential for addiction and abuse. In view of the current opioid crisis, controlling access to prescription analgesics is important. […]
Medtronic’s myPTM Smartphone Controller for SynchroMed II Pain Drug Pump Approved by FDA
Medtronic landed an FDA approval for its myPTM smartphone-powered controller for the SynchroMed II drug delivery system. The new product allows pain patients with the implanted SynchroMed II device to deliver a bolus of the medication into their bodies, precisely when needed. The patient’s physician can set limits on how much of the drug can be […]
Quell Non-Medication Solution for Chronic Pain: Interview with CEO Shai Gozani
Chronic pain affects 100 million Americans and is the most common cause of long-term disability. Long-term use of pain medications has significant risks, and chronic pain is a major contributor to opioid overuse. NeuroMetrix hopes to offer effective, non-medication solutions for chronic pain. The Waltham, MA-based company has developed the Quell wearable device, which uses principles […]
Vagus Nerve Stimulation to Reduce Post Surgical Brain Inflammation
Following a difficult surgery, some patients end up experiencing cognitive decline and delirium, which seems to arise from inflammatory changes in the brain, that are still poorly understood. This inflammation is difficult to control in a targeted way, but researchers at Duke University seem to have discovered that electrical nerve stimulation may do the trick. […]
SPRINT Peripheral Nerve Stimulator Cleared in U.S. to Treat Chronic and Acute Pain
SPR Therapeutics, a Cleveland, Ohio firm, landed clearance from the FDA for its SPRINT endura and extensa peripheral nerve stimulators (PNS). The endura is a single lead system, while the extensa is dual lead. The two devices represent the only FDA cleared dual-lead capable percutaneous PNS that can be used for up to two months in either the back […]
Actisound Intense Therapeutic Ultrasound Device Cleared in Europe
Guided Therapy Systems, based in Mesa, Arizona, landed EU CE mark approval (via Ardent Sound Inc., Guided’s partner and manufacturer) for the Actisound Intense Therapeutic Ultrasound device. It’s intended to help recover from a variety of injuries and chronic pain resulting from internal soft tissues. The device is used to create small ablations within the tendons, […]
Experiences from the First StimRouter Implanted in Patients in Canada
As a shadowing medical student in family medicine clinics in Toronto, I’d seen patients with chronic pain of a neurogenic origin and always felt heartbroken. I’d looked on in helplessness as we consoled the patients and offered them physiotherapy, bedrest, and pain killers. We and the patients knew none of these options were curative, and […]
Kids Want Virtual Reality to Help Get Through Immunizations
Getting children to go through a needle-based immunization can be incredibly frustrating to parents and very scary for the kids. Cheap virtual reality headsets are becoming just the thing to overcome this seemingly perpetual problem and researchers at Florida Atlantic University were looking to prove this out. The group invited a group of kids and their […]
ResQ is Using Games to Fight Opioid Addiction: Interview with Dr. Paul Glimcher
Earlier this year at the Health 2.0 WinterTech Conference, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) and Catalyst @ Health 2.0 launched the RWJF Opioid Challenge, an initiative aimed at bringing together healthcare and technology innovators to solve a growing epidemic of addiction in the United States. A panel of 19 judges evaluated 97 initial submissions based […]
Accuro Helps to Make Epidurals and Spinals Easier: Interview with Will Mauldin, CEO of Rivanna Medical
Performing epidural and spinal anesthesia requires a good deal of training and being able to sense when the needle reaches the desired location. This is certainly not foolproof and some patients are harder to work with than others. One issue is that a sonographer is usually required to operate the ultrasound while the anesthesiologist delivers […]
Text Messaging System Helps Care Providers and Patients Manage Opioids
Opioid abuse having become a serious health threat for many and a dire societal problem in many parts of America. Perhaps a simple messaging app can help? A collaboration from Washington University School of Medicine and Epharmix, a nearby company based in St. Louis, has released a simple text-based service to help people kicking the addiction. […]
Neurostimulation Enhanced by Digital Health: Interview with CEO of NeuroMetrix
Neurostimulation has the capacity to stop pain signals from traveling up to the brain, but to mask the pain effectively and for long periods of time clinicians have turned to implants. That is because conventional TENS (Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation) devices don’t have the strength and focus to comfortably quell pain in long intervals. NeuroMetrix, […]
StimRouter Receives Health Canada Approval: Interview with Mark Geiger of Bioness
Bioness, a Valencia, California medical device/rehabilitation company, recently received approval from Health Canada for its StimRouter device, an implantable peripheral nerve stimulator designed to reduce chronic pain. We spoke with Mark Geiger, the Global Director of Marketing for Implantables at Bioness to learn more. Ben Ouyang, Medgadget: Tell me about Bioness and the StimRouter. […]
Boston Sci’s WaveWriter Spinal Cord Stimulator Delivers Paresthesia-Based and Sub-Perception Pain Therapy
Boston Scientific just won FDA approval for the first spinal cord neurostimulator system to provide both paresthesia-based and sub-perception therapy at the same time. The WaveWriter system delivers electrical stimulation that the patient can feel (paresthesia) or a type that is not directly felt, but experienced through reduced pain. The patient can choose either or combine the […]
Tiny Wireless Neurostimulator Small Enough for Injections
Neurostimulators are becoming popular for treating Parkinson’s, Essential Tremor, pain, and other neurological conditions. They typically involve a battery-powered implant resembling a pacemaker placed on the chest that has electrode leads attached reaching up to another part of the body, often the brain. There are a number of disadvantages with implantable batteries and issues related […]
Ingestible Biosensor for Tracking Opioid Use Following Acute Injury
Opioids, such as oxycodone, are routinely prescribed for short-term pain management following pain-inducing injuries. However, their use is associated with the development of tolerance and addiction, due in part to dosage mismanagement by patients. Recently, the FDA approved the use of the first digital pill administered in combination with a prescription drug. Digital pills, which […]
First Electronic Device for Opioid Withdrawal Therapy Approved by FDA
The FDA has given a regulatory green light to the first device that reduces opioid withdrawal symptoms. The NSS-2 Bridge from Innovative Health Solutions, a Versailles, Indiana firm, is stuck to the skin behind the ear and relies on four electrodes that are attached around the ear. The electrodes are used to deliver electric current […]
Medtronic’s Compact Intellis Implantable Neurostimulation System Cleared in Europe
Medtronic won European regulatory approval for its Intellis system, which can be used for either spinal cord or peripheral nerve neurostimulation to help relieve chronic pain. This is currently the smallest implantable spinal cord stimulator on the market, which was released in the U.S. only a couple of months ago. The Intellis implant delivers both […]