InteliSpark client Innovein, Inc has won a $225,000 contract with the National Science Foundation for the Phase I Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) project, "Venous Valve Prosthesis as a Cure for Chronic Venous Insufficiency.”
Innovein develops a prosthetic valve technology aimed for patients that suffer from chronic venous insufficiency (CVI). They developed a novel prosthetic valve to treat underperforming veins by targeting the underlying cause of the disease. As people begin to age, valves in their veins of their legs can begin to function poorly, causing blood to build up in the ankles due to gravity. This starts a chain reaction in the body that leads to pain and/or swelling of the feet, skin discoloration and open wounds by the ankles.
Since there are not any approved venous valves in the market, treatment for CVI is limited to wound care and skin grafts. These restricted options of treatment can be costly for non-healing venous stasis ulcers. Innovein’s proposed technology will work to treat CVI while alleviating complications that are related to prior attempts at valve prostheses, including valve breakdown and formation of blood clots. Given the tremendous costs associated with valve prostheses attempts, Innovein’s approach will leverage with being minimally invasive and offering up to a 40% reduction in the cost of care within the first year of treatment.
Innovein’s objectives are to build the device, compare iterations on the bench and validate the technology in animals. This lays the foundation for future clinical trials and the end goal of usage in the broader population. The proposed project will allow for further research and validation of safety and function of the described approach and progress to commercialization.