Health, Canada (Commonwealth Union) – Physicians dealing with the diagnosis of stroke patients now have an innovative tool at their disposal, courtesy of Vena Medical, a company that originated from Velocity, the University of Waterloo’s start-up incubator.
Vena Medical has introduced a groundbreaking treatment involving a miniature camera, the MicroAngioscope, enabling doctors to observe real-time, full-color images of the interior of the brain’s blood vessels. In a groundbreaking achievement at The Ottawa Hospital, this technology facilitated the diagnosis and treatment of a patient experiencing multiple strokes, marking a world’s first. Utilizing the MicroAngioscope, doctors not only identified the root cause of the stroke but also administered treatment within a remarkably short timeframe of one hour.
Michael Phillips (BASc ’17), CEO and co-founder of Vena Medical, explained, that what the camera does is allow doctors to see exactly what’s going on inside a blood vessel, providing information they’ve never had on prior occasions. This advancement is particularly crucial as approximately one-third of patients suffering from multiple strokes have an elusive cause that doctors struggle to identify. Traditionally, X-ray technology has been the preferred method for diagnosing, navigating, and treating stroke patients, but Vena’s MicroAngioscope offers a novel and valuable alternative.
Phillips pointed out the distinction between using an X-ray and their camera by indicating that the utilization of an X-ray is like applying GPS only to navigate, but having a camera is like getting a view through a window.
The camera, born out of the fourth-year mechanical engineering design project of Phillips and co-founder Phillip Cooper (BASc ’17), is incredibly small, measuring just one-third of a millimeter in diameter.
Dr. Robert Fahed, who is an interventional neuroradiologist at The Ottawa Hospital, holds the distinction of being the first physician to employ Vena’s MicroAngioscope in performing this groundbreaking procedure.
“This opens the door to a new way of practicing this specialty,” added Dr. Fahed. “This also means that now we can finally see the inside blood vessels, everything needs to be re-explored and re-defined.”
While Phillips and Cooper, drawing on their engineering expertise, played a pivotal role in bringing the miniature camera to fruition, the inspiration for this innovative idea stemmed from their awareness of the challenges faced by their family members who were physicians. In contemplating the focus of their fourth-year design project, the duo delved into researching the difficulties encountered by specialists treating strokes and the potential repercussions for patients.
Phillips articulated, that Doctors said with the present medical technology, they did not have sufficient information to make clinical decisions. What they set out to accomplish was to find a solution to that problem, and the solution was providing doctors with the information they require to have an improved treatment for stroke patients with a tiny camera that is capable of seeing from inside the blood vessel.
Operating from Velocity Science on the University of Waterloo campus, the founders emphasized the invaluable support received from advisors and fellow founders. They also leveraged resources at the lab to develop a proof of concept.
“We got a lot of value through mentorship, but it was also by being around other founders and startups that gave us actionable advice which helped us move forward with our idea,” added Cooper. “Being involved with Velocity on campus made the transition to Velocity Downtown Kitchener and then to other incubators more seamless.”
Vena Medical, based in Kitchener, has secured global patents for their groundbreaking technology, particularly the MicroAngioscope device. The company’s founders are ambitious about the future developments of their device, envisioning it as a transformative tool for stroke treatment and intervention.
With strokes the speedy treatment is key and this new device is likely help enhance speed up the treatment further with better visuals.
