Canadian-Made Portable Brain Scanner Technology NeuroCatch® Receives Health Canada Approval For Latest Breakthrough Advances
Advances in Next Generation NeuroCatch® More Sensitive in Detecting Brain Function Changes – Rapid Uptake in Concussion
SURREY, BC, Sept. 27, 2022 /CNW/ - NeuroCatch Inc. ("NCI"), a subsidiary of HealthTech Connex ("HTC"), is excited to announce that the newest version of its groundbreaking NeuroCatch® Platform brain function assessment system has received a Health Canada medical device license. The previous generation NeuroCatch® already received Health Canada approval in 2019 and is currently being used in a number of clinical research studies throughout North America.
NeuroCatch® is an industry-leading medical device that offers a rapid, objective evaluation of cognitive brain function in minutes at the point of care. The technology is used across Canada and the USA to evaluate concussions and other neurological conditions. The latest innovative advancements in the next generation NeuroCatch® enable 10-15 times improved sensitivity in detecting subtle but significant changes in brain function when monitoring neurological conditions like concussions and brain injuries.
The NeuroCatch® Platform can be used in various health conditions, including brain injuries, neurological diseases, mental health issues, and brain optimization. On the heels of its FDA clearance in the USA, the most recent Health Canada approval paves the way for clinicians and researchers in Canada to quickly leverage this cutting-edge technology's next-generation capabilities.
"We're incredibly proud that Health Canada has quickly provided our latest medical device approval for the next generation of NeuroCatch®," said Dr. Ryan D'Arcy, HealthTech Connex President and Chief Scientific Officer. "As a leading R&D company in neurotechnology, we are committed to the highest possible quality through pioneering scientific breakthroughs. The capabilities embedded within this next generation NeuroCatch® represents a major leap forward, offering healthcare practitioners and researchers even greater evidence-based evaluation capabilities to quickly and accurately provide an objective measurement of cognitive function, which is delivered in minutes at the point of care."
The world's first fully accessible and portable cognitive brain scanner, NeuroCatch® consists of brainwave (electro-encephalography or EEG) sensors embedded in a mesh cap, which interfaces with a custom hardware/software platform to deliver standardized medical-grade results. Qualified healthcare professionals and researchers can use the NeuroCatch®Platform at any point of care in healthcare settings including clinics, labs, hospitals, sporting venues, schools, military theatres, and remote deployments. It is helpful at any time in the care continuum, from baseline evaluation through ongoing treatment, with immediate and intuitive results to guide clinical decisions.
Results simplify interpretating by translating the evoked brain responses into intuitive radar plots that can be compared to prior scans over time.
The next generation of NeuroCatch® offers notable advancements, including:
- A cloud-based platform providing real-time access to much-anticipated radar plots, displaying the largest and most representative normative reference value datasets (Source).
- An innovative EPiO™ Adapter, providing 10-15x improvement in temporal precision and sensitivity (Source).
- Rapid, objective, and physiological cognitive reporting that provides sensitive digital cognitive function measures.
- Deployable digital health technology that can be applied at any point of care where professional healthcare and clinical research is conducted.
The NeuroCatch® Platform is currently being used for both clinical and research applications in leading centres across Canada and the U.S., including a long-haul COVID brain fog treatment program at the Surrey Neuroplasticity Clinic. Groundbreaking concussion research studies with youth hockey and football players were led by the Mayo Clinic and Sanford Clinic, respectively. Since then, NeuroCatch® is being rapidly and widely deployed across a range of clinical and research investigations to help clinicians diagnose concussions where it happens, identify breakthrough treatments, effective preventative options, and begin predicting adverse outcomes.
When brain injuries are more severe, NeuroCatch® is being utilized by leaders at the Alberta Children's Hospital and Weill Cornell Medicine at Cornell University to help improve clinical care. Expanding clinical applications of NeuroCatch® include healthy cognitive aging, neurological diseases (e.g., dementia, Parkinson's Disease, and multiple sclerosis), mental health (e.g., anxiety, depression, and PTSD), and brain performance optimization.
"NeuroCatch® emerged from leading science and research to provide an objective, sensitive, rapid, and portable evaluation of elements of cognitive brain function," said Michael Esser, MD, PhD., Pediatric Neurologist and Director of the Neurocritical Care and Translational Research program at Alberta Children's Hospital and the University of Calgary. "It opens up long-awaited capabilities for clinicians and researchers to advance brain healthcare. We've used NeuroCatch® in our concussion research examining children with mild traumatic brain injuries and are excited and waiting for this next generation release for the sensitivity gains and intuitive reporting. NeuroCatch® prioritizes quality, working collaboratively, and providing a clinical tool that is automated, standardized, and easy-to-use, while not resorting to a 'black box' approach in terms of giving full control to the clinician to help our patients."
"I was at the top of my game, participating in a Ride to Conquer Cancer, when I slipped and fell in a bathtub breaking the fall with my head. I didn't realize I had a serious concussion yet finished the bike ride in serious difficulty," says Tom Dutta, Founder and CEO of KRE-AT®, TEDx Speaker, #1 International Best-Selling Author and Radio/Film Producer. "I slipped into mental health challenges, experienced chronic anxiety, depression, thoughts of suicidal ideation, debilitating light sensitivity, double vision, impaired gait, balance, vestibular, executive functions, and major headaches. It wasn't until I sought medical help with advanced neuroscience capabilities looking inside my brain, did I start to see and feel improvements. NeuroCatch helped track my brain function progress and together with several neurological therapies, made a significant impact on my current recovery. The biggest advice I can give to anyone like me is a quote by Stephen Hawking: 'Be brave, be curious, be determined, overcome the odds. It can be done.'"
Learn more about the NeuroCatch® Platform online at https://www.neurocatch.com.
About NeuroCatch Inc.
NeuroCatch Inc. is a neuro-health technology company focused on translating neuroscience research innovations into real-world medical devices and consumer products. Located within the Health and Technology District in Surrey, British Columbia, NeuroCatch Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of HealthTech Connex Inc. Its medical device, the NeuroCatch® Platform, is an objective, rapid neuro-physiological brain function assessment system that is licensed by Health Canada as a Class II medical device. It is easy to use, cost-effective and readily accessible to healthcare practitioners, researchers and peak performers. neurocatch.com
About HealthTech Connex
HealthTech Connex connects science and R&D to product breakthroughs utilizing state-of-the-art technology and Software as a Medical Device (SaMD). The team comprises of recognized health, science, and business leaders with extensive experience in leveraging healthcare advances fueled by agile partnerships through its headquarters located in the Health and Technology District in Surrey, British Columbia. The company is focused on delivering translational neuroscience innovations to care sectors and communities worldwide. healthtechconnex.com
SOURCE HealthTech Connex Inc.
