Pulmonary telehealth gets hot: FDA clears MTI’s Bluetooth spirometer for home use

May 2, 2017 | by
[grow_thumb image=”https://telecareaware.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/GoSpiro.jpg” thumb_width=”150″ /]Monitored Therapeutics, Inc. (MTI) of Dublin, Ohio received FDA 510(k) clearance for a new home spirometer (left) specifically designed to connect via Bluetooth to smartphones, tablets, and PCs. According to Michael Taylor, MTI’s Chief Development Officer, “The GoSpiro is the only spirometer currently on the market that has met the latest and more stringent ISO and FDA device requirements for home use.”

Bill Zimlich, MTI’s CEO, told this Editor more about their market and the reasons for its development. “The GoSpiro is the first to be developed specifically for the home, and also the first to pass the home use FDA requirements. “Slow spirometry” is an added differentiating feature for highly impaired patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), cystic fibrosis and other conditions who would have difficulty with the fast exhalation needed for the FEV test.”

Spirometers collect information on the patient’s inhaling and exhaling air in amount (volume) and speed (flow). The GoSpiro measures forced vital capacity (FVC) and slow vital capacity spirometry (SVC) which are the two main tests used to measure lung function in patients. It connects to MTI’s proprietary platform, CarePortal, based on Qualcomm 2Net, and their GoHome Patient Health Monitor. Specifications are listed here but it appears that MTI will not be selling direct to consumer.

Currently, spirometers are infrequently used in the home, which has been to the detriment of patients with pulmonary diseases such as asthma and COPD, plus associated conditions such as heart disease. Existing units have been expensive (from hundreds to thousands of dollars, excepting some new entrants), bulky, and require manual or cabled input to telehealth platforms. While cost is not disclosed, the MTI GoSpiro appears to be the first FDA-cleared home use device to fully change this picture, and in size and type can be easily bundled with a telehealth kit. Press release. Mobihealthnews.

Others in the now-hot pulmonary game are not far behind. (more…)

Who’s raising what! Babies to pets!

November 4, 2016 | by

Our takeoff on ace direct response guru Denny Hatch’s ‘Who’s Mailing What!’ has been slightly modified from ‘getting’ to ‘raising’–we do want to be proper ;-)

  • The first big raise happens to be an Editor favorite due to its high Cute Factor–the Owlet smart sock for monitoring your baby’s oxygen level and heart rate. This latest round is $15 million, bringing their funding to $25 million. Investors included Eclipse Ventures and Eniac Ventures, plus new investors Trilogy Equity Partners, the Amazon Alexa Fund, RTP-HC, Capital Integral and Broadway Angels. Owlet is now the commercialization partner on a $1.5 million grant from the NIH to further infant health research, in addition to an earlier equal grant. Plans include a connected care feature giving users access to their data and the ability to share that data with pediatricians, scheduled for a 2017 release; retail and international distribution; two new product lines and a large infant health study. Finsmes
  • Cohero Health closed a $9 million Series A financing for its BreatheSmart lung function platform, which actively engages respiratory patients by tracking medication adherence and measuring lung function. Funding was led by Three Leaf Ventures, an affiliate of the Broe Group, with participation from Zaffre Investments, the investment arm of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, BioAdvance, and new investors GIS Strategic Ventures, Heitkamp & Thumann Group, and P5 Health Ventures. A StartUp Health company, they develop care connected devices and mobile applications that measure lung function and tracking adherence through the BreatheSmart toolkit. Finsmes, Mobihealthnews
  • PlushCare, a California-based telemedicine (virtual visit) company, had an $8 million Series A raise funded through GGV Capital with participation from Lightspeed Venture Partners and Exponent. Finsmes
  • And even pet health is getting funded. PetCoach, a Pennsylvania-based digital pet healthcare platform, secured $2m in seed funding from Comcast Ventures, in addition to earlier funding from DreamItVentures and Maveron. PetCoach provides an online pet care service combining personal advice and 24/7 access to certified pet professionals. Users can leverage the PetCoach website and the app in order to interact with certified veterinarians. Finsmes