NEW YORK (WCBS 880) — A group in New York is working to change the medical community by helping to give more of a voice to patients.
Lyfebulb is a unique company that is working to “generate insights, build new solutions, and bring revolutionary products” to the medical field.
Part of their process is helping out scientists that are looking to revolutionize the medical world, like Pierluigi Mantovani, who developed what could be a game changer for people with multiple sclerosis and have trouble walking.
It’s called the EvoWalk.
“It’s a wearable device that has algorithms on it to actually time electrical stimulations to help pick up your foot when you’re walking,” he said.
He’s an inventor with a very personal stake in his new product.
“My dad actually was developing a walking problem called ‘foot drop’ due to his multiple sclerosis,” Mantovani explained.
His product is patient-driven, which is exactly what Lyfebulb is looking for.
“We focus on the gap between patient communities and industry,” said Karin Hehenberger, CEO and founder.
Like Mantovani, she says she also has an extremely personal connection to her work.
“I’ve lived with Type 1 diabetes for now 31 years, and I also have two transplants,” said Heheberger. “I have a kidney transplant and a pancreas transplant, and I have a pacemaker. And my experience as a patient really helped me to come up with the idea for Lyfebulb.”
Lyfebulb invests in products and innovations, exactly like Mantovani’s EvoWalk.
In fact, he won a $25,000 annual prize that Lyfebulb offers – and that’s only one of the many prizes that the company has given out to help develop products patients say they need.
“We get insights and solutions from patients and individuals who are living with chronic disease and we use those insights to identify unmet needs,” Hehenberger said.
To learn more about Lyfebulb and their work, visit Lyfebulb.com.