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| ReWalk's exoskeleton system--Courtesy of ReWalk |
While established med tech giants occupied themselves largely with incremental refinements mean to protect existing franchises, it was innovation, mostly from smaller companies, that sparked real excitement from patients and investors alike.
ReWalk Robotics ($RWLK) with its robotic exoskeleton to enable paraplegics to walk and Second Sight Medical ($EYES) with its eyeglasses system that bypasses damaged blind eyes to produce images were among the most well-received IPOs this year in any sector. In the first day of trading, they bounced 122% and 113%, respectively.
Next year, look for more big-picture R&D advances and approvals, particularly in indications where drugs have failed to provide adequate treatment such as obesity and chronic pain. Neuromodulation devices are becoming more acceptable for improving mood and reliving pain; smaller, non-surgical and more effective devices are likely to continue to emerge.
Obesity devices will make their way onto the U.S. regulatory scene next year, perhaps providing U.S. patients more effective and safer weight loss alternatives than the newer drug options that have met largely with patient indifference in recent years.
As for diabetes, an artificial pancreas--a device that effectively monitors and introduces hormones related to blood sugar such as insulin in a manner similar to the bodily organ--seems a virtual inevitability as major companies continuously refine their integrated insulin pump and blood glucose monitor technology and researchers experiment with new techniques such as a bio-artificial pancreas that utilizes pancreatic cells.
That integration of biological materials into medical devices is now becoming more of an extension of biodegradable and bioresorbable technologies, as companies look for a way to extend the efficacy of their products, as well as to reduce the inherent difficulties and safety issues of having a long-term implant within the patient's body. -- Stacy Lawrence