10 MedTech startups to watch in 2019
Health monitoring apps, at-home diagnostic devices and healthcare communication software are just a few examples of technology making our lives easier than ever before. In 2017, we did some research on the future of medicine lying within software. Now we decided to look into the MedTech industry again, as 2019 seems to be a really good year for medicine-related startups. There are a lot of new innovative solutions popping up on the market, as well as, several promising ones, founded a few years ago, that are growing rapidly, for example, thanks to recent financing. Let’s take a look at a few of them that are worth watching!
The idea that drove the founders of Smiletronix to create a self-use AI-powered dental diagnostic tool was the fact that dental check-ups are time-consuming, expensive and, therefore, often not frequent enough. The Barcelona-based MedTech startup, founded in 2018, is working on building an AI image recognition tool connected with an app that detects dental health problems much sooner than a patient can feel pain and see any visible changes in their teeth. Smiletronix is at the beginning of their journey towards making dental healthcare more accessible and affordable to everyone, but at the start of 2019, they achieved a big milestone. They filed their first patent for their proprietary intraoral imaging device. We are looking forward to hearing more about their innovative solution in the future!
Ava Women, a provider of a sophisticated sensor bracelet, an app and a powerful backend with self-learning algorithms for menstrual cycle tracking, is not that much of a newbie on the MedTech market, but surely it is growing rapidly. After receiving a series b $30M funding in May 2018, they invested a lot in clinical research. The results of their recent trial, that involved 200 women and more than 1,000 menstrual cycles, proved that the changes in various physiological parameters collected by the bracelet during the menstrual cycle accurately determined the five most fertile days of the menstrual cycle with 89% accuracy.
Another MedTech startup, targeted at women, that attracted our attention is an Isreali invention called Livia, or as they like to call themselves, a provider of an off switch for menstrual pain. This drug-free scientifically proven solution for period pain is based on the “Gate Control Theory”. An electronic device that you attach to your waist belt and electrode gel pads that you put on your lower abdomen transmit a unique pulse to keep the nerves “busy.” When the nerves are stimulated, the nerve gate is closed, preventing pain signals from reaching the brain and being felt. Apparently, multiple clinical trials prove this solution to be a great relief for women suffering from strong menstruation pain.
Communication is often a crucial thing in saving lives. There is a number of startups providing communication platforms for healthcare. Some of them, allow patients to contact their doctors remotely through mobile or web apps, like recently introduced Florida-based CallingDr, providing high-quality video calls, secure messaging and patient reminders or Swedish Kry that allows having a video appointment with a doctor or a psychologist within 30-mins from filling out a symptom questionnaire. Others, like Berlin-based Klara, optimise the way doctors treating one patient collaborate with each other finding the best available treatment looking at the problem from a wider perspective. It’s are like a “central nervous system of healthcare” connecting all patients and health care practitioners through secure treatment-related messaging.
None of the above mentioned new tests and devices is offered to the public as soon as they’re invented. In order for any new medical device or medication to be introduced to the market, there needs to be a clinical trial conducted to measure its effectiveness. Such clinical trials study how safe and helpful these treatments are through a group of people testing them first. Such trials require a lot of effort and engagement of both doctors and patients. A Pennsylvanian startup — RootHealth is a virtual assistant that provides 24/7 concierge and data capture automation to complete trials safely and efficiently.
Dubai, being the Middle East’s startup hub, has a few interesting MedTech startups to offer. TachyHealth, founded last year, is aspiring to support and amplify the diagnostic value of medical imaging and radiology and ignite the health insurance industry by investigating the complexity of the claim management process, making it more intelligent through big data analysis, deep learning and artificial intelligence. Another new solution from the Middle East is BioChain. It aims to reduce the medical error rate in the healthcare industry thanks to a hardware and software Blockchain solution. Last but not least, there is a startup called Mosaikx. They came up with a wearable device — Hipo — that allows better care for patients with Alzheimer’s disease. It lets such a patient’s family members monitor their daily activity and stay in touch. Hipo helps to plan the patients day, remind them about their activities and monitor their safety.
