At the Academic Medical Centre Arthur Kievit has developed a method for diagnosing prosthetic loosening of Total Knee Replacements (TKR) in a direct manner. The orthopaedic surgeon in training designed a device that enables the application of a constant force to the knee while recording a CT-scan. With the use of dedicated software the condition of the bone-prosthesis interface can subsequently be evaluated. Kievit’s method improves the diagnosis of TKR loosening which is currently costly, time consuming and has a risk of a false positive result. He realised that this also implied a business opportunity, which he explored during AMC’s Graduate Course ‘Entrepreneurship in the Life Sciences’. His case stood out and yielded him participation at a training day of IXA Pontes Medical, where he won a development award.
He now hopes to demonstrate the clinical relevance in a study in seven hospitals, funded by a valorisation grant from NGI/ZonMW, the Netherlands Organisation for Health Research and Development. With the establishment of his spin-off firm Comforthod, Kievit hopes to pursue other projects as well: “I like to bridging the gap between clinic and business”, he says. ‘Providing a solution for everyday clinical problems is satisfying in itself, but turning it into business means you’re really giving it relevance.”
When Ard den Heeten, professor of Radiology teamed up with his AMC colleague Kees Grimbergen, professor of Medical Technology, a new approach to mammography was born. It has been developed upon Grimbergen’s observation of a serious flaw in the current mammogram procedure: the establishment of a standard force of the so-called “paddle” compressing the breasts. […]
Why is intellectual property important? What is included in intellectual property and what not? How does patenting work? Sanne Stembert of IXA explains everything you need to know about the valorisation process, intellectual property and patenting.
AMC clinical physiologist Peter Sterk’s idea to explore the use of e-nose technology for diagnosis of lung disease has really payed off. His brand-new ‘SpiroNose’ breath analyser will shortly become available for hospitals and general practices. Sterk is confident about the clinical validation studies that are now underway: “The SpiroNose will be a formidable addition […]