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Several neurotechnology researchers and entrepreneurs who were instrumental in the development of the industry participated in an intensive online workshop devoted to brain-computer interfaces and related technologies earlier this month. The two-day event, titled “Brain-Machine and Related Neural Interface Technologies: Scientific, Technical, Ethical, and Regulatory Issues,” was organized and Global Affairs Division.

The recent National Academies Workshop on Brain-Machine and Related Neural Interfaces featured presentations from a number of neurotechnology pioneers who have advanced the field over the last 20 years [see conference report, p7]. But in our view, one of the most meaningful presentations came not from a researcher, but a user of neurotechnology. Brandy Ellis, a patient with treatment-resistant depression, related her experiences with an implanted DBS system.

A recent paper in Nature: Scientific Reports provides a peek at what Galvani Bioelectronics and Case Western Reserve University have been up to over the past few years. “Low intensity stimulation of aortic baroreceptor afferent fibers as a potential therapeutic alternative for hypertension treatment” provides an insightful look at an alternative way of using neuromodulation as a means of addressing hypertension and heart failure.

A mostly in-person audience of pain doctors, neuromodulation industry professionals, and researchers attended the 2022 Napa Pain Conference earlier this month in the wine country of California. The event was produced , a company founded . A preconfernce workshop was devoted to cancer pain. Katalin Karikó from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, who invented the modifi…

Like most areas of technology, the neurotech industry has had its share of legal battles. Most of these have involved intellectual property disputes and the resolution of those cases is often long and arduous with complicated settlements and licensing agreements. One of the most significant neurotech patent lawsuits was between the Alfred Mann Foundation and Cochlear Ltd., which was filed in 2007.

Several startup firms and research institutions in the field of bioelectronic medicine have begun to offer therapies for treating COVID-19 and related disorders. In 2020, an influential group of investigators and executives from emerging bioelectronic medicine firms formed a consortium called the International Consortium on Neuromodulation for COVID-19. Earlier this month, 14 members of the consort…

The neuromodulation market for treating psychiatric disorders received a significant boost earlier this month with the news that Abbott is re-entering the market for treating major depression using deep brain stimulation. St. Jude Medical, which Abbott acquired in 2017, departed the psychiatric disorders market after the FDA halted the firm’s BROADEN trial of DBS of Cg25 in 2012 because of a failed futility analysis.

For neuromodulation researchers, clinicians, and entrepreneurs pursuing the market for psychiatric disorders, the road to commercialization of new therapies has been long and bumpy. But as we indicate in our article on page 1 of this issue, the perseverance of those who did not give up the fight after some early setbacks seems like it has paid off. This publication was the first to report on the fa…

The market for treating bowel and bladder disorders using bioelectronic medicine therapies is currently dominated implanted sacral nerve stimulation systems, Medtronic and Axonics. But recently, two startup firms have reported progress at novel approaches to treating these disorders. Neuspera Medical, the San Jose, CA developer of neuromodulation systems, recently announced it will begin enrollment in its pivotal clinical trial, SANS-UUI, a single-arm study that will enroll 145 patients at 25 sites globally.

Several neurotech vendors and research teams pursuing advances in neuroprosthetics have reported significant developments in recent weeks. The steady progress offers hope to individuals with severe paralysis and other disabilities. Synchron, makers of a novel endovascular BCI, announced in May that they received an IDE from the FDA for the first-ever permanently implanted BCI in a human clinical trial.