The new Coronavirus outbreak made clear that there is not enough stockpiled medical equipment like masks, gowns and gloves to fulfil the need of the world's health care systems, as hospitals deal with the pandemic. Several EIC projects have useful solutions to improve protective measures and hospital’s devices. Here are 5 EIC companies with innovative medical equipment that can help the fight against COVID-19.
Two Gloves Protection: Many surgeons and nurses try to protect themselves from infection risks by wearing two gloves on top of each other. Smarterials Technology GmbH introduces a ground-breaking double gloving substitute innovation based on micro-particles, multi-layers and the use of natural raw materials to the market. The safety-optimized material structure integrates a perforation indicator and combines the properties and advantages of single-layer gloves with the benefit of double gloving – Two-in-One.
Country: Germany
EU contribution: 1.850.060 €
Safe Patient Transport Unit: EpiGuard’s EpiShuttle unit has been developed using the expertise of clinical professionals with first-hand experience in providing advanced treatment for patients with highly infectious diseases. The EpiShuttle is an award-winning flexible patient transport unit designed for the safe transportation of highly infectious patients. Developed with the input of medics, patients, and clinical experts, the solution has been used with life-threatening diseases such as Ebola.
Country: Norway
EU contribution: 2.495.500 €
Healthy Textile - The World Health Organisation has identified several textiles items used in hospitals as representing the main cause for Nosocomial infections (Hospital Acquired Infections-HAI). Nano Textile’s technology is considered to be a game-changer in the sense that there is an effective antibacterial coating patented for all medical textiles, which is durable for industrial washings, cost-effective, and applicable to all textile types. Their chemical formulations give textiles the ability to destroy bacteria, protecting doctors and patients alike against potentially harmful bacteria and infections.
Country: Israel
EU contribution: 2.352.875 €
Antimicrobial Coating – Smart Separations has been working on an antimicrobial coating made of synthetic antimicrobial peptides (AMPs). This coating has displayed antimicrobial activity against several bacteria, fungi and viruses and it is expected that can destroy COVID-19 with high efficiencies. According to Hugo Macedo, CEO of the company, “applying these filters in a range of public areas, as well as personal protective equipment (masks, gloves, clothing), could heavily reduce the spread of COVID-19, as well as the common cold”. The company is currently trying to access a licensed test lab to confirm the efficacity of the coating in defeating the Coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. On the basis of these tests, Smart Separations would be able to scale-up the technology.
Country: United Kingdom
EU contribution: 1.998.588 €
PulseHaler - Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is a progressive debilitating disease of the lungs that affects 50M Europeans. Respinova Ltd. has invented a novel device called PulseHaler to treat the disease in a revolutionary way by opening the small airways, which are known to collapse in patients thereby making it increasingly difficult to breathe. Pulsehaler can help the fight against COVID-19 in 3 ways:
- Pre-treating COPD patients, the most at risk for severe COVID infection, to improve their lung function, potentially reducing the need for hospitalization or the risk of secondary infection;
- Treating moderate-severe COVID patients in hospital, delaying or preventing the progression of moderate/serious COVID-19 patients (who do not yet require mechanical ventilation) to a state where they require ICU ventilation;
- Improving lung function and reducing residual effects of infection by treating COVID-19 patients post infection;
Country: Israel
EU contribution: 2.414.366 €
DISCLAIMER: This information is provided in the interest of knowledge sharing and should not be interpreted as the official view of the European Commission, or any other organisation.