News

Several startup and early stage neurotechnology companies will be presenting at the 2013 Neurotech Leaders Forum, to be held in San Francisco, CA October 14-15. These include Neuro Recovery Technologies, Inc., a Southern California neurorehabilitation startup cofounded . The company is developing a novel spinal cord stimulation system to promote rehabilitation and locomotion in individuals with spinal cord injury.

The market for treating vestibular disorders may be a potential area of growth for the neurotechnology industry. There is significant unmet medical need for inner ear disorders such as Meniere’s disease, which produces vertigo, tinnitus, and other symptoms. Although there is medication which can help once an attack is underway, there is currently no long-term therapy which can resolve the disease completely.

The market for neurorehabilitation products continues to expand, with established vendors consolidating their product lines and new technologies entering the arena. One key European manufacturer is Hocoma in Switzerland, which markets the Lokomat robotic neurorehabilitation system. The company recently sold its 500th system to a hospital in Hong Kong. Hocoma revenues reached CHF31 million ($33 million) last year and are growing at a 13-percent rate.

It’s nearly impossible to edit a newsletter like Neurotech Business Report without making reference to the individuals who are the intended recipients of neurotech products and therapies. So it caught our attention when we received an email from a new organization called RespectAbilityUSA with advice on how to refer to people with disabilities. Some of the advice is just plain obvious—don’t use the word “retard” or “retarded kid” to refer to someone with a cognitive or learning disability.

News that British pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline has started a venture fund to invest in “bioelectronic” technologies [see article, p1] represents a positive development for the neurotechnology industry. The new fund, and the efforts of GSK’s Bioelectronics R&D unit, not only raises the specter of a new source of funding and partnership for neurotech startups, it opens the door to an expansion of the role that neurotech devices have played in healthcare.

Clinicians, researchers, and vendors in the neurotechnology field have a lot more to think about given recent news about involuntary outpatient commitment programs. One such program in New York State, known as Kendra’s Law in honor of a victim of a subway attack schizophrenia, provides intensive caseworker monitoring to ensure certain psychiatric patients obtain outpatient treatment. While most of…

The mood was upbeat at the INS meeting in Berlin earlier this month with the news of St. Jude Medical’s investment in Spinal Modulation [see article, p4, Conference Report, p7]. In an industry beset by misfortunes, from failed clinical trials to lengthy approval cycles, to tighter capital availability, any kind of good news was welcome to investors, startups, and established players alike. With one…

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Neurotechnology Entrepreneur to Keynote 2005 Neurotech Leaders Forum Alan Levy, President and CEO of Northstar Neuroscience, Inc., will keynote the 2005 Neurotech Leaders Forum, to be held in San Francisco, CA October 20-21. Levy, founder of one of the most promising venture capital-backed neurotechnology firms, will address many of the issues involved with launching a neurotechnology startup. The fifth annual event, produced , will be held at the Crowne Plaza San Francisco International Airport.

Neural Prosthesis Recipient to Keynote 2003 Neurotech Leaders Forum Jennifer French, one of the first recipients of an experimental standing/transfer prosthesis that allows paraplegics to stand up using their own paralyzed leg muscles, will deliver the keynote talk at the 2003 Neurotech Leaders Forum in San Francisco. The event, a full-day management and investment conference directed at neurotechn…