Neural device market rise contains huge business opportunities

United States a new company NeuroPace, hope to quickly obtain the approval of the competent authorities to launch a series of neural implant device (neural implants); and the company is a growth potential of the emerging neural device (neural device) market in one of the many manufacturers.

NeuroPace is after 10 years of product development, and finally in July of this year to the United States Federal food and Drug Administration (FDA) handed out for the treatment of epilepsy brain implant device listing applications; the companies want their RNS system can make in a year.

"In the next ten years, I believe there will be a variety of closed/open loop (closed and open loop)-brain stimulation device to replace the current destructive step (surgery). "NeuroPace medical long Martha Morrell said.

Epilepsy implant device test, has let the researchers on the potential of such technology with new ideas, which may be applied to treatment including pain management (pain management), as well as suppression Parkinson's or Alzheimer 's.

Morrell on a farm in the United States held in biological and medical device Forum (BioMedDevice Forum), said: "this is our first time to an in-depth study of the brain, and see what happens in real time; we will which device as a disease management tool. ”

NeuroPace's RNS implant device that uses two customized chips found in brain anomalies epilepsy patients than in the past activities to more widely; Morrell said: "before the onset of epilepsy patients, no one has been out-patient medical records, showing the number of outbreaks of the disease is just the tip of the iceberg; while we found that these patients a day at least 600 times, each time 1 ~ 2 minutes of brain stimulation.

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Physicians can implant device programming, induction and extensive status response; NeuroPace is also responsible for maintaining a long-term observation of brain wave activity in the database.

Morrell said she expected that small doses of drugs can be passed, or on a specific area of the brain electrical stimulation applied device development potential; a new generation of electrode array and the sensor, will help to extend this kind of device can treat the symptoms.

In addition to the brain waves, the present study researchers in brain blood flow, oxygen and nerve conduction material (neural transmitters)-even temperature change-over of disease symptoms may impact.

Other business opportunities and challenges

According to market research agency NeuroInsights estimates, neural device market is currently about $ 7 billion, annual average growth rate of 15%.

If the implant device NeuroPace such neuromodulation (neural modulation) unit, the market size of approximately 23 billion, annual average growth rate of 14%; neurosurgery equipment (neural surgical devices) are also contributing to the market, not the small size of about 35 million u.s. dollars, the average annual growth rate of 17%.

Although overall venture capital (VC) market downturn trend, particularly in the areas of medical care, for neural device market risk investments remained strong, in the amount of investment in 2009 15.8 billion, up 9% market share, at the same time the overall life sciences (life sciences) industry venture investment amount is reduced.

The market is the subject of a lot of investment; for example, another new record company NeoStim, is developing at a deep brain regions of non-invasive magnetic stimulation (magnetic stimulation) method for the treatment of serious depression; the company medical long M.

Brett Schneider said that this technology will also be extended to other regions of the brain or spine, to treat Parkinson's disease, pain or anxiety disorder.

There is also a company Trifectas Medical is developing to help stroke patients in rehabilitation of implantable devices, electrical stimulation of the brain to a specific region to promote nerve cells and growth hormones, and reduce inflammation symptoms.

The company co-founder Terry Reese is a veteran implant device development engineer, he represents the current year there are about 80 million of stroke patients, of whom half are such devices may use the object.

NeoStim Reese of Schneider on the developed technology is very optimistic about the future, he said: "like muscles can use becomes stronger, the cells are stimulated after the new Axon (axons) and dendrites (dendrites); therefore the stroke rehabilitation patients will have substantial benefits that may affect those no disease symptoms of people of normal cognitive development.

"However, these new devices also face many challenges; current researchers use high resolution imaging of the brain, links to specific areas of activity of the brain, but this kind of technology is not only expensive, but also very time consuming.

For example, developing a Orasi Medical modeling (modeling) software application in called magnetoencephalography (magneto-encephalography); this technique can be measured to the brain about 1 cm in size in the range, only for 1 MS (millisecond).

But this sensitivity super system requires immersion in liquid helium (liquid helium) of superconducting components, so the cost up to $ 2 million, but also in cost hundreds, have special protection of the Interior.

Orasi CEO stated: "we can put this class of equipment becomes more portability, thus doctor in the General consultations between the tested technology with highDegree of interest. ”

As for the development of external NeoStim magnetic stimulation device, which is relatively old technology, such as large capacitor, and high power switching brake fluid (switching thyristors), Schneider said: "new materials and components may help quick storage and release of energy.

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He added that implant devices need better and more powerful batteries, but also to a more secure way to transfer energy to the body tissues, and will not cause burns; for example there is a Stanford University (Stanford), are developing using LED light to trigger neural activity.

In practice, Trifectas of Terry said, researchers still do not know which patients will or will not play on the device for the treatment, or even do not know how to take a common approach to measuring outcomes: "each of these areas will need to test, which means that it will take a few years time, as well as large sums of money; but it has a huge business opportunity, because the human body is able to operate in electric energy.

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