Wireless EEG devices expand care options

Recent advancements made in remote patient monitoring technologies are enabling more and more conditions to be addressed beyond traditional points of care. A recent example of this comes from digital health company Epitel, with their recent announcement of $12.5m in series A financing for their wireless seizure detection platform REMI. Epitel’s successful funding round reflects a growing interest in remote patient monitoring solutions for conditions that were previously limited to inpatient observation.

Electroencephalography (EEG) is a testing method that monitors the brain’s electrical activity using small electrodes placed on the scalp and is used to assess a range of neurological conditions. Epitel’s new REMI platform consists of a wireless, wearable EEG sensor coupled with remote access software that is used to detect and monitor seizures in patients with epilepsy. The benefit of this technology is that it allows EEG readings to be carried out by trained clinicians regardless of their physical location, which can further expand testing accessibility to hospitals that lack in-house capabilities or specialists. Currently, the device is only currently FDA approved for use in hospital emergency rooms and critical care units in the US. However, the company has stated that their new financing will permit them to further develop their product for patient use outside of the hospital.

The diagnosis and management of neurological conditions often require extensive inpatient EEG monitoring to track electrical brain wave patterns and disturbances. Hospitals employ a variety of EEG devices to monitor patients in neurology units, which collectively made up a device market of over $180m in the US last year as estimated by GlobalData. Despite the size of this installed base, published studies have estimated that over two-thirds of the US population does not have ready access to EEG testing. Remote-monitoring devices offer a solution to address this need by allowing data collection to occur in a patient’s home to inform their physician’s decision-making process.

Remote monitoring devices will continue to improve patient access to healthcare where physical distance was previously a barrier. As these technologies continue to improve, they may be applied towards an increasing number of patient conditions for at-home disease management. Medical Device Network