News

Scarred for TENS devices from CMS and the demise of Empi, the surface stimulation market is on a slow but steady rebound. For more than 30 years, the market was dominated the treatment of pain. Many of the competitors in this space were gobbled up (formerly Encore Medical). The stream of acquisitions included vendors like Empi, Chattanooga Group, and Compex Technologies. Declining revenues and the CMS decision caused DJO to divest its Empi unit late last year.

In the 15 years that we have published this newsletter, we have witnessed a mismatch in the way new neuromodulation and neuroprosthetics products have been funded and commercialized. Neuromodulation products such as SCS systems for chronic pain have often been funded . Investors put up money to finance device commercialization and then earn their money back after it reaches the market. The route to…

About 250 neural engineers, clinicians, and neuromodulation industry professionals attended the Neuromodulation: The Science conference in San Francisco, CA earlier this month. The meeting was put on , the former president of the International Neuromodulation Society. The conference was a follow-on to the Mechanisms of Action Conference, which took place in Orlando, FL in 2014 [NBR Mar14 p7]. The c…

The Alfred Mann Foundation for Scientific Research, based in Santa Clarita, CA, is entering a new phase after the death of its founder, Alfred E. Mann, earlier this year. The serial entrepreneur founded the foundation in 1985 and it has developed several neurotechnology products and medical devices in the years since. Spinoffs from AMF include Advanced Bionics, Second Sight, Bioness, Axonics Modulation Technologies, Medallion Therapeutics, and Quallion.

In the two and a half years since this publication first reported the failure of the BROADEN trial of DBS for depression [NBR Dec13 p7], there has been considerable progress in advancing our understanding of how DBS modulates depression circuits. Unfortunately, there has been little effort new DBS therapies for depression. In part, this is because the BROADEN failure and an earlier failure /VS DBS has dampened enthusiasm and risk-taking at medical device firms.

The market for noninvasive brain stimulation devices, such as transcranial magnetic and electrical stimulation systems, has been largely driven psychological disorders. But there are now several commercial firms and research institutions pursuing clinical trials of rTMS or tDCS systems for applications in neurorehabilitation. According to the recently published report, The Market for Neurotechnolog…

About 120 executives from pharmaceutical and neurotech device firms participated in the 11th annual Neurotech Investing & Partnering Conference in Boston, MA earlier this month. The event was sponsored and NeuroInsights. In a session devoted to research and development at large medical firms, Jeff Erb from Medtronic and Jeffrey Nye from Johnson & Johnson discussed issues affecting their companies’ decisions on investing in internal and external research programs.

April has been a good month for the neurotechnology industry. Perhaps the biggest news is Abbott’s purchase of St. Jude Medical [see article, p3], which will instantly make the medical device firm a key player in the neurotech space. Though Abbott did not previously have a neuromodulation product line, it’s obvious that the higher growth rates of St. Jude Medical’s neuromodulation products made the deal more attractive to them.

Several established and startup neurotechnology firms are entering the market for treating dysphagia. Often labeled as the neglected disorder, dysphagia is a neurological condition marked . Neurotech devices in this space largely rely on neuromuscular stimulation, but future therapies may exploit noninvasive brain stimulation. The complex process of swallowing involves nearly 50 pairs of muscles and it is the primary means of nurturing the body.

Since its beginnings, the neurotechnology industry has had to contend with playing second fiddle to the pharmaceutical industry. In many instances, neurotech therapies are only considered after all available drug therapies have failed to alleviate symptoms in an individual with a neurological disease or disorder. While addressing treatment-resistant populations in conditions such as chronic pain, e…