Digital Health Coffee Time Briefing ☕ 

Your morning summary of digital health news, information and events to know about if you want to be “in the know”. 

???? News 

???? Sooma, a Finnish medical device company, is revolutionising depression treatment with its portable brain stimulation devices. The company has secured €5M in funding, in a round led by Voima Ventures. The funding will help to make at-home brain stimulation for treating depression more widely available. The device uses transcranial direct current stimulation, offering a drug-free option for treating the condition. It is paired with a digital platform, which allows clinicians to remotely monitor treatment adherence and tailor it to individuals’ needs.

???? Angelini Pharma has launched a new crowdsourcing campaign that is hoping to capture innovative new ways of target identification in epilepsy. The New Digital Approaches to Target Discovery in Epilepsy challenge has been launched in partnership with innovation scale-up Wazoku and focuses on digital approaches. The open innovation challenge has two elements: how to collect and integrate multiple data types, and new algorithms and tools for target selection.

????‍⚕️ Mahana Therapeutics has acquired Cara Care, enhancing its position as one of the leading global providers of digital treatments for chronic conditions. The acquisition will not only expand Mahana’s product portfolio, but will also help accelerate its market entry in Europe, where the reimbursement of digital treatments is currently outpacing the US. The combined company operates across the US, Germany and the UK, with both FDA-cleared and digital wellness programmes for IBS and tinnitus. It also has a pipeline to reach patients suffering from IBD, heartburn, coeliac disease, pruritus and vulvodynia. Financial terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.

???? Live video streaming from trauma incidents using innovative technology is feasible to implement and evaluate, a new study led by the University of Surrey has found. The study, funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research, looked at GoodSAM Instant-On-Scene technology, used via 999 callers’ smartphone, to aid emergency medical services’ decision-making. The study confirmed live streaming from 999 callers is feasible, acceptable and easy to use for both callers and dispatchers. It noted further research was needed to explore the impact it has on dispatch decisions.

???? AI-assisted phylodynamics and visualisation techniques are being used as part of a project to develop a method that infers the measles elimination status. The AI technique will be used to distinguish imported cases from local mutations to estimate temporal transmission chain lengths – the main feature for assessment of the elimination status on a country basis. Visualisation techniques will support the quick assessment of upcoming cases and outbreaks.

❓Did you know that? 

A Coventry University research study has found that remote working can be a positive intervention for people with a disability and/or those who are neurodivergent. The Remote4All project, launched by a researcher in the Research Centre for Healthcare and Communities at the university, aims to fill a gap in understanding the impact of remote working. Data published in 2021 by The Office for National Statistics estimated only 29% of autistic adults were employed in the UK. The new research suggests that remote work could significantly benefit some people.

???? What we’re listening to

GenesisCare’s new Deadly Silent Podcast, created to mark prostate cancer awareness month and fronted by TV presenter Nick Owen.

???? This week’s events 

13 March, The NEC, Birmingham – Digital Health Rewired 2024 – You can still register to attend on site!