The Finnish company Injeq has initiated clinical trials with its IQ-Needle and its performance has been demonstrated in clinical tests.
The IQ-Needle, developed by the Tampere based company Injeq, is equipped with electrodes and a related bio-impedance measuring tissue analyzer for advanced real-time information. It can be applied in several clinical areas, including regional anesthesia, diagnostic lumbar punctures and intra-articular injections. It is expected to benefit patients by improving the quality of the tissue samples, reducing puncture-related tissue damage and optimizing the patient care process.
The company announced in June that the clinical medical device trial “Identification of Liver Tumors Using IQ Biopsy System” has started with the first patients enrolled. The trial aims to validate real-time tissue identification capabilities of the novel core needle biopsy system.
“Based on both literature and our own research, we know that our technology can identity various tissues in real-time. This is, however, the first time that this technology has been applied for tumors located in internal organs,” comments Kai Kronström, CEO, Injeq.
A research paper about tissue-identifying smart needle in lumbar puncture was published on August 4th in the Journal of Clinical Monitoring and Computing. The clinical research was conducted with adult patients in three hospitals in the Tampere region, Finland.
The company is continuing clinical research of the IQ-Needle with new patient groups undergoing lumbar puncture to obtain diagnostic spinal fluid samples. The company is also running clinical trials with the IQ-Biopsy system that integrates tissue identification and core biopsy needle.
“We’ve seen smart phones to take over the mobile phone business. There’s no doubt that eventually the Smart Needle will replace traditional needles and Injeq is in a good position to drive this transformation,” says Mr Kronström.
The smart needle improves current practice by providing an alert when the tip of the needle comes into contact with spinal fluid. The physician is then alerted that the needle has reached the spinal canal and the tip is in close proximity to the sensitive nerves of the spine.
