Spinal Cord Stimulation Delivers Improved Arm Function

 EINDHOVEN, the Netherlands & LAUSANNE, Switzerland - Friday, 01. July 2022

Preclinical Data Published in Nature Neuroscience Show Potential for ONWARD’s ARCIM Therapy to Restore Movement in Hands and Arms after Spinal Cord Injury

(BUSINESS WIRE) -- ONWARD Medical N.V. (Euronext: ONWD), the medical technology company creating innovative therapies to restore movement, independence, and health in people with spinal cord injury, today announces a Nature Neuroscience publication showing the potential for ONWARD’s ARCIM Therapy to restore movement and function in hands and arms after spinal cord injury.

Regaining hand and arm function is the highest priority for many people with cervical spinal cord injury. Even mild functional deficits in hand and arm function lead to significantly reduced independence and quality of life. It has historically been challenging to develop new therapies for hand and arm function because their movements are complex and multidimensional. Researchers in today’s Nature Neuroscience publication investigated a potentially more effective approach to improving motor control of the upper limbs after spinal cord injury – an implantable neurostimulation system that modulates the spinal cord region involved in controlling hand and arm function. This preclinical data showed that precise electrical stimulation targeting relevant spinal cord segments enhanced muscle activation and strength, and facilitated more efficient hand and arm movements.

“We are preparing to launch our transcutaneous ARCEX Therapy to restore hand and arm function in 2023,” said Dave Marver, CEO of ONWARD. ”The findings from this Nature Neuroscience publication suggest there may also be a role for implanted ARCIM Therapy to help people with spinal cord injury regain arm and hand function. Indeed, the greater precision and 24/7 availability of implanted ARCIM Therapy may offer meaningful support for activities of daily living.”

“Small improvements in hand and arm function offer large benefits in independence and quality of life. Current approaches such as functional electrical stimulation (FES) induce fatigue and fail to sustain the three-dimensional movements required for activities of daily life”, said Grégoire Courtine, professor at EPFL and co-author of the Nature Neuroscience paper. “We look forward to studying this approach in humans within the next several months and working with ONWARD to potentially commercialize this important therapy.”

As part of its suite of intellectual property agreements with EPFL, ONWARD has the rights to develop and commercialize cervical spinal cord stimulation therapy to improve hand and arm function in people with spinal cord injury.

The publication features preclinical research performed by neuroscientists at EPFL, University of Fribourg, and University of Pittsburgh. The research initiative was sponsored by the Wyss Foundation, ONWARD, the Bertarelli Foundation, the Swiss National Science Foundation, and the European Union’s Horizon 2020 program.

To learn more about ONWARD’s ARC Therapy and the company’s vision to restore movement, independence, and health in people with spinal cord injury, please visit ONWD.com.

About ONWARD

ONWARD is a medical technology company creating innovative therapies to restore movement, independence, and health in people with spinal cord injuries. ONWARD’s work builds on more than a decade of basic science and preclinical research conducted at the world’s leading neuroscience laboratories. ONWARD’s ARC Therapy, which can be delivered by implantable (ARCIM) or external (ARCEX) systems, is designed to deliver targeted, programmed spinal-cord stimulation to restore movement and other functions in people with spinal cord injury, ultimately improving their quality of life. ONWARD has received three Breakthrough Device Designations from the FDA encompassing both ARCIM and ARCEX. The company’s first FDA pivotal trial, called Up-LIFT, completed enrollment in December 2021 with 65 subjects worldwide. The company completed its first-in-human use of its ARCIM neurostimulator in May 2022.

ONWARD is headquartered at the High Tech Campus in Eindhoven, the Netherlands. It maintains an office in Lausanne, Switzerland, and has a growing U.S. presence in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. For additional information about the company, please visit ONWD.com. To access our 2022 Financial Calendar, please visit IR.ONWD.com.

Disclaimer

Certain statements, beliefs and opinions in this press release are forward-looking, which reflect the Company or, as appropriate, the Company directors’ current expectations and projections about future events. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. These risks, uncertainties and assumptions could adversely affect the outcome and financial effects of the plans and events described herein. A multitude of factors including, but not limited to, changes in demand, competition and technology, can cause actual events, performance or results to differ significantly from any anticipated development. Forward looking statements contained in this press release regarding past trends or activities should not be taken as a representation that such trends or activities will continue in the future. As a result, the Company expressly disclaims any obligation or undertaking to release any update or revisions to any forward-looking statements in this press release as a result of any change in expectations or any change in events, conditions, assumptions or circumstances on which these forward-looking statements are based. Neither the Company nor its advisers or representatives nor any of its subsidiary undertakings or any such person’s officers or employees guarantees that the assumptions underlying such forward-looking statements are free from errors nor does either accept any responsibility for the future accuracy of the forward-looking statements contained in this press release or the actual occurrence of the forecasted developments. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this press release.

 

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220630005472/en/

Permalink

https://www.aetoswire.com/en/news/spinal-cord-stimulation-delivers-improved-arm-function

Contacts

For Company Enquiries:

info@onwd.com

For Media Enquiries:

Laurie Doyle

media@onwd.com

+1 339 832 0752

For Investor Enquiries:

investors@onwd.com