Publicly listed world medical gadget firm Penumbra has expanded its portfolio to incorporate digital actuality choices by its REAL Immersive System in 2019. The system is designed to assist clinicians meet the person wants of sufferers in a rehabilitation setting.
The corporate then expanded its digital actuality choices with the REAL i-Sequence in 2021, bringing immersive gaze-based experiences to healthcare suppliers and psychological well being professionals. Earlier this 12 months, he launched his y sequence, which targeted on bodily and cognitive rehabilitation.
Adam Elsesser, President, Chairman and CEO of Penumbra, joined MobiHealthNews to debate Penumbra’s REAL System choices and the way the platform is altering therapeutic rehabilitation.
MobiHealthNews: Why did you resolve to increase and enter the digital actuality area?
Adam Different : It is comparatively easy. We by no means noticed ourselves in Penumbra as others prefer to categorize us. We began out as a stroke enterprise – then once we bought into the peripheral aspect, you recognize, the remainder of the physique. It was, “Nicely, wait. I assumed you have been a stroke firm.” We’ve got by no means restricted ourselves to one of these reflection. We see it as a easy factor. If there are people who find themselves affected by some type of illness and we expect we are able to discover a resolution, that’s type of our mandate. We occurred to start out with a stroke. This was one thing we understood comparatively effectively and thought we had an answer. We moved to the remainder of the physique for the very same cause.
We aren’t a know-how firm. We’re not notably enamored with the thought of VR exterior of that use. It truly is, nonetheless, a one-stop software for serving to folks with a reasonably big selection of situations.
MNH: You stated it treats completely different situations. What situations does the REAL system deal with?
Elsesser: We first targeted on rehabilitation following a stroke, which we knew fairly effectively. [We] understood how the mind interacts after a stroke, what neuroplasticity is, and how one can assist encourage and profit from neuroplasticity with a digital actuality software. We then understood that to imply that it may do a whole lot of various things past this explicit use case, in different types of bodily rehabilitation – the place you are, in impact, encouraging actions which might be in any other case troublesome or not enjoyable or disagreeable – and in additional pure psychological well being areas, like stress discount.
MNH: Are you able to inform me how the REAL System works?
Elsesser: It makes use of the software of digital actuality – the concept you placed on a headset and are, in actual fact, transported to a distinct place. We’ve got completely different variations, relying on the medical situation.
So we have now the y-series, which is the flexibility to see and observe your physique on this expertise. That is notably designed for issues within the rehabilitation area, however might be expanded to different functions the place seeing your personal physique permits you to be extra engaged and doubtlessly have a deeper means to work together with no matter this expertise, however above all, if it’s essential to know the way the motion goes. Do you elevate your hand? From what angle? What sort of rotation? You’ll be able to measure all of this very exactly with our sensors, that are proprietary. They don’t seem to be primarily based on optics. It isn’t the standard stuff you see in on a regular basis business headsets which might be out there.
After which we have now a headset alone with none sensor, and even any controller. It is all gaze-based so folks in different settings, who would possibly even have restricted motion on their fingers or their grip is not there, needn’t assume that means. They will simply management it with their head. And it is often, we name it the i-series, for extra psychological well being functions.
MNH: How do these programs assist therapists do their job?
Elsesser: For example you had a stroke and misplaced mobility or partial mobility on the proper aspect of your physique. Let’s simply focus in your proper arm, for instance. To be able to start to regain motion on the proper aspect of your physique, we do rehabilitation. Rehab is solely repetitive movement time and again as a lot as you possibly can to attempt to retrain the mind. The explanation you possibly can’t transfer your arm after a stroke is that the mind tissue that controls this motion is now not viable. The assault knocked him out, if you’ll. So the basic precept of neuroplasticity is which you can put that perform elsewhere. You’ll be able to retrain one other a part of the mind to do that perform, however it’s arduous work and never everybody can do it. It’s terribly tedious. And doing it in digital actuality is less complicated because of the perform. You’ll be able to idiot the mind sooner.
The therapist controls the rehabilitation session. So there’s a pill that comes with it. And this pill has two elements. The primary is that each one workout routines are managed by the therapist. They select which one they use and so they additionally management, as a part of the train, what occurs. Plus, they see what you see on their pill. So that they’re all on-line and on the finish they get a report that measures all these strikes, and so they can take a look at it and see how you probably did in comparison with what you probably did final time and the earlier time. So it is actually designed for the affected person, however it’s additionally designed with a whole lot of therapist in thoughts.
The important thing right here is to not eliminate therapists. I believe typically folks assume know-how is making an attempt to exchange the therapist. The therapists are superb, and ultimately we may have a house model that the therapist can even management, the place you possibly can expertise it remotely. But additionally then, the therapist can provide folks homework that they management. So it is not like they put it on and play, however they do the workout routines that the therapists can watch and see the info round your motion. Every thing is recorded. It truly is a healthcare-oriented software.
Our aim right here is, and I believe it is actually key and it is in all probability apparent from what I’ve stated earlier than, we do not consider in digital actuality or the immersive world as an finish. There are firms – I can’t title them [whispers Meta or Facebook] – however they consider it’s best to dwell on this faux world perpetually, as a result of then you definitely’ll spend cash and generate profits, and so they’ll management the whole lot you do. It is bizarre. I can’t do it. I do not assume most individuals will. It isn’t the aim. Our aim is that can assist you dwell in the true world as rapidly as attainable. And that is why we named the product the REAL System, as a result of the aim is to dwell in the true world and use it solely as a therapeutic software to get again into the true world. And it is actually necessary that we are saying that as a result of I believe, sadly, the facility of this know-how has been form of confused with all this different nonsense, and I believe it is necessary to carry out this actually necessary differentiated level.