Unmet Need
· Gastroparesis and functional dyspepsia (FD) are debilitating stomach disorders that together affect more than 10% of the world population.
· Current approaches to treatment focus on symptom management, with pharmacological treatment being first-line; treatment efficacy is limited.
· Gastric electric stimulation devices are a non-drug treatment option for those with severe and/or refractory disease, but have unproven clinical efficacy.
· Therefore, there is a strong need for safe, clinically effective electroceutical devices to treat gastroparesis and FD.
Value Proposition
· Gastric electrical stimulation (GES) device capable of both continuously recording gastric motility and administering GES.
· Closed-loop system that incorporates feedback from motility monitoring to deliver precise stimulation at the physiologically-appropriate time.
· Able to selectively stimulate enteric neurons in sync with natural gastrointestinal slow wave patterns resulting in relaxation of the pyloric sphincter muscles to promote gastric emptying.
Technology Description
· Researchers at Johns Hopkins have developed a chronically-implantable electroceutical device for treatment of gastroparesis and Functional Dyspepsia (FD).
· The device is implanted in the stomach and is capable of both monitoring gastric activity and administering gastric electrical stimulation (GES) to alleviate symptoms.
Stage of Development
· Validated prototype in animal models of gastroparesis/FD.
Publication
N/A