A.Teddi Weiss, MD, Intensive Cardiac Care Unit and Yoni Katz, Eng., Heart Institute, Hadassah University Hospital; Mendel Mendelbaum, Division of Computers and System Information, and Shraga Gorni, Faculty of Life Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
Background
Sudden cardiac death (SCA) caused by ventricular fibrillation or cardiac arrest is the major cause of death among the adult population in developed countries, killing 400,000 people annually in the US alone. 70% of sudden cardiac deaths occur at home and the chance of survival depends directly on the time to defibrillation, with a 10% decrease in chance of survival with each minute of delay. Presently only 13% of home SCA victims survive. Ventricular fibrillation can be halted and normal heart activity restored, by the electrical defibrillation comprising an electric shock applied to the heart. Similarly, heart arrest can be treated by pacing electrical signals at a rate of 60-80 pulses per minute. The defibrillation procedure is usually effective when applied in intensive care units in hospitals, where a state of fibrillation is easily detected and treatment is quickly applied. Hospital intensive care units are usually equipped with expensive defibrillation equipment, along with professional personnel who are able to perform the treatment. The majority of potential fibrillation victims live at home, however, who are not under constant medical supervision.
Our technology is not only innovative and extremely useful for home use; it also would be available at a low cost without the need for batteries or the use of expensive capacitors. The device in such a form is virtually maintenance-free.
Market
- In 2003, the portable AED market was $348 million.
- By 2010, the total portable AED market is estimated to exceed $2.3 billion.
"The portable AED market growth is 30% and is expected to reach $250M in 2005
. If they got a home defibrillator down to $700, it would sell incredibly well. It could become a baby boomer Father’s Day gift and sell 500,000 units a year" (H. Cohen, Frost & Sullivan, NY Times, May 2005).
The Innovation
The technology is based on a variety of novel factors. For starters, it uses AC electrical energy that is available almost anywhere to generate the defibrillating or pacing waveform and is immediately operational. It includes means of monitoring, analyzing and performing the necessary steps according to the patient's condition as well as means for controlling the energy and shaping the applied wave to meet the requirements of the patient's condition. The defibrillator is also able to generate the required synchronized waveforms for override pacing to terminate Ventricular Tachycardia (VT). Furthermore, there is no delay in repeated operation, thus allowing for repeated defibrillation, pacing in the case of cardiac standstill and pacing override for VT termination.
R&D Program
- Prototype development
- Pre-clinical trials
Contact
Stuart Bernstein
Business Development, Medical Devices
Tel: +972-2-6777906
Email: stuart@hadasit.co.il
