News

October has been a busy month for clinicians, researchers, and commercial vendors involved with neuromodulation for chronic pain. Clinical societies, conference organizers, regulators, and funding organizations have all recognized the importance of developing alternatives to opioids for treating pain. Since we first sounded the alarm in this space five years ago [NBR Sep14 p2], the public has come to realize that the apparent cost benefit that pharmaceuticals had over device interventions was a cruel hoax at best.

Neurotech firms and research institutions can look forward to increasing levels of government funding in the years ahead. Much of that support will come from several DARPA programs targeting neurotechnology. The NIH recently announced it has awarded $945 million in FY 2019 through the HEAL initiative, which will help fund new neuromodulation therapies for treating chronic pain and opioid abuse. Ano…

The North American Neuromodulation Society recently announced that it will launch an Emerging Technology Forum on January 23, 2020 just prior to the NANS 2020 Annual Meeting in Las Vegas, NV. The Forum is designed to provide an interactive and dynamic platform for startup and emerging neuromodulation firms. This event will also showcase new and innovative companies in the space. The theme of the NANS 2020 Annual Meeting is Driving Innovation through Science and Evidence .

In the 19 years that we’ve been publishing Neurotech Business Report, we’ve witnessed a number of changes. One of the most notable differences in the neurotech industry of today compared to the field back then is the level of invasiveness required to obtain meaningful neural signals from the brain and the neuromuscular system. As we report in our article on page 1 of this issue, steady advances in…

Two new neuromodulation approaches for treating obesity have emerged in recent months, one using closed-loop implanted brain stimulation and the other using noninvasive stimulation paired with genomics. The new therapeutic strategies add to the list of previous neuromodulation efforts, which include VNS, gastric stimulation, DBS, and TMS. Earlier this month, NeuroPace announced that they will use t…

Three key U.S. universities with active neural engineering programs are banding together to help advance commercialization of neurotechnology. The new IEEE Brain Initiative is sowing the seeds of commercialization and entrepreneurship by launching a unique workshop designed to help graduate neuroscience and neural engineering trainees approach their research with an eye toward commercialization. Th…

Earlier this year, the FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health launched the Patient and Caregiver Connection Program in an effort to gain a better understanding of end users’ perspectives. There have been similar efforts such as Faster Cures, a watchdog of the 21st Century Cures Act, or the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute, which funds patient-centered research. These initiatives are welcome additions to the medical device landscape.

The NIH’s Stimulating Peripheral Activity to Relieve Conditions program took a major step forward earlier this month with the unveiling of a new data portal and with a series of meetings with key investigators and partners. The NIH revealed much of its new efforts during the 11th Congress of the International Society of Autonomic Neuroscience in Los Angeles [see conference report, page 7]. SPARC is…

The much-heralded public announcement from Elon Musk’s Neuralink commercial endeavor, which took place in San Francisco earlier this month, revealed many details about the company’s technology and product directions that were previously unknown. The launch event also uncovered relationships that the Bay Area firm has established with other neurotech firms and research institutions. During the July…

SCI2020, Launching a Decade of disruption in Spinal Cord Injury Research was held earlier this month on the NIH campus in Bethesda, MD. The event was sponsored Neurological Disorders and Stroke and the National Center for Medical Rehabilitation Research. Lyn Jakeman, director of the division of neuroscience at NINDS, kicked off the charge for the audience to “break down silos” and encouraged participants to work collaboratively across disciplines.