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Six ideas to help patients with musculoskeletal conditions have won the “For Such A Time As This – OrthoChallenge” innovation-promoting initiative. The products revealed by challenge entrants have the potential to assist orthopedic patients during and after the COVID-19 pandemic, and help reduce risks during an operative procedure.
Audrey Beckman, leader of the selection process, said, “Rapid change and crisis encourage innovation. It has been energizing to see ingenuity, combined with technical and clinical knowledge, that provides solutions to the changing needs of patients during this historic and challenging period. While born during the pandemic, these innovations may benefit patients and healthcare providers for many years.”
Winners include:
Fred Ferlic, M.D., for the TayCo External Ankle Brace, providing stability and balance for ankle/hindfoot problems by fitting over the patient’s own footwear. Patients can safely mobilize while they await surgical treatment. Dr. Ferlic was an orthopedic surgeon for 40 years before co-founding TayCo Brace in 2016.
Josh Rabinowitz for Movement-Synchronous Muscle Stimulation for Out-of-Clinic Muscle Strengthening & Activation, which provides personalized, movement-synced electrical stimulation that will help patients retain muscular function during the time of limited physical activity they await surgery. Mr. Rabinowitz is CEO and co-Founder of Articulate Labs, developer of KneeStim™, a device that helps rehabilitate knees through intelligent application of neuromuscular electrical stimulation to quadriceps musculature during everyday movement.
Thomas Myers, M.D., for UVC-LED Viral Inactivation Protocols for Healthcare Provider Protection, which uses specific wavelengths of LED technology to inactivate RNA viruses. This responds to the need for new protocols to prevent the spread of viruses and reduce risk for patients undergoing surgery as they move through the hospital environment before, during and after a procedure. Dr. Myers became an orthopedic surgeon in 2003.
The full list of winners is available online.
OrthoChallenge winners will receive the following:
- Regulatory consultative assistance courtesy of Empirical Technology Corp.
- Product exposure on the OREF TV and Venture Capital TV Internet channels, courtesy of the Orthopaedic Research and Education Foundation.
- Advice from these medical device accelerators and investors on how to “fast track” their innovations to patients:
- InMotus Medical
- MendMedical
- KCK Group – Medical Technologies
- IntuitiveX
Initiative sponsor Raymond Cloutier, NovApproach Spine’s CEO, said, “It was clear that each innovator who took the ‘OrthoChallenge’ had a passion to help orthopedic patients in a creative way. This ‘can do’ attitude to overcome the issues we face gives me great hope.”
