PASITHEA, an NLC venture, sets out to help people with sleep apnea by developing a new medical device.
In our world today, approximately 425 million people between the ages of 30-69 suffer from a common type of sleep-disordered breathing. A condition called Obstructive Sleep Apnea.
OSA causes severe fatigue during the day and is associated with high blood pressure, arrhythmia, stroke, and heart failure. When untreated, Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) will cause a loss in general productivity and workplace efficiency. OSA can also result in injuries and fatalities caused by vehicle accidents.
Currently, the gold standard treatment for OSA is continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP). However, CPAP has a 15% initial refusal rate and long-term adherence is difficult because up to 50% drop out in the first three years of treatment. Non-CPAP therapies (e.g., oral appliance therapy and upper airway surgery) have varied and unpredictable efficacy. This has created the need for a new and effective approach to treating OSA.
Pasithea is a solution that provides a non-invasive device that detects, monitors, and treats obstructive sleep apnea using kinesthetic stimulation. Kinesthetic stimulation delivered during the early phase of apneas or hypopneas may elicit a controlled startle response that can activate sub-cortical centres controlling upper airways muscles, and thus limit the associated oxygen desaturation and tachycardia, which are linked to an increased risk of cardiovascular morbidity. This technique is used for the first time as a therapeutic solution for obstructive apnea syndrome.
Pierre Ansay, CEO of Pasithea: ‘‘Pasithea will be a simple device to install, not cumbersome for the patient and the stimulation will automatically adapt to his or her needs. For the healthcare professional, it will be an alternative to CPAP, in case of refusal or if long-term adherence to the therapy is difficult to achieve.”
With over twenty years of experience in medical entrepreneurship and the development of innovative devices for the diagnosis and management of sleep apnea and medicine, Pierre knows first-hand what it takes to bring Pasithea to this patient group. He believes that new treatments need to be developed to suit different patients.
Currently, the technology is featured in several clinical peer-reviewed publications. The following steps will be miniaturising the device and obtaining CE mark/FDA approvals. We are working on making the treatment of sleep Apnoea (OSA) more effective and patient-friendly.