Israeli Innovations Include ‘Cath Lab of the Future,’ Stent and Digital Developments

MIAMI BEACH, FLA.—Israel has long been a renowned epicenter for medical innovations. Two presentations here at TCT 2012 explored the nation’s roadmap for success, and gave attendees an overview of the latest developing technologies.

Ran Kornowski, MD, of Rabin Medical Center and Tel Aviv University in Petah Tiqwaa, Israel, said that beyond more general strengths like an entrepreneurial spirit and gift for problem solving, Israel’s innovation is fueled by four specific factors. Expertise in security and military technology has been one of the principal drivers behind the development of the high-tech scene, he noted. An emphasis on higher education and government support for research and development also are important. Most crucially, he added, Israelis possess the character trait of ‘chutzpah’.

Chutzpah, Kornowski said, translates roughly as “guts — the ability to overcome difficulties, to go beyond the limits and the horizons.”

He reported that 4.7% of Israel’s gross domestic product is currently devoted to research and development. There are more than 1,000 life science companies in the country, including 500 focused on medical devices, with 50 new companies created each year. Cardiovascular medicine is a leading sector, with approximately 100 companies in existence.

But while “the Israeli innovation scene continues to hold promise, it shows emerging signs of weakness,” Kornowski cautioned, citing decreases in funding and the fact that one-third of start-ups no longer exist after 5 years. High-tech education is also being diminished, he said, and so-called ‘brain drain’ is a concern as trained specialists are leaving Israel to pursue careers elsewhere.

Technological, digital developments

Chaim S. Lotan, MD, of Hadassah University Hospital in Jerusalem, meanwhile, suggested that investment in research and development could explain Israel’s global lead in the number of medical device patents per capita. He outlined the innovations spearheaded by the country toward the “cath lab of the future.” Among them are noninvasive imaging technologies, treatments for structural heart disease, robotic cath lab equipment, devices for cerebral embolic protection and optimal positioning during TAVR, closure devices and heart failure therapies.

For instance, the company Arineta is developing a dedicated cardiac CT scanner. By capturing the entire heart volume in 125 milliseconds, the scanner “gets rid of all the changes [related to] respiration, with [fewer] artifacts and less blurring,” Lotan said. The goal is to eliminate unnecessary intervention in the coronary arteries, though additional applications may include preparations for and follow-up after TAVR and in the imaging of congenital defects.

The MGuard stent (InspireMD), also designed in Israel, is specifically designed for thrombus-containing lesions. Wrapped in a net that expands during deployment, the CE-mark-approved stent reduces the risk of plaque rupture and embolization. Late breaking results of the MASTER trial, which pitted MGuard against BMS or conventional DES in more than 400 patients, will be presented today by TCT Course Director Gregg W. Stone, MD, of Columbia University Medical Center in New York.

Another project is a smartphone app (CountingApp) that allows remote monitoring of pulmonary reserve in patients with CHF or COPD. In addition, Israeli researchers have designed a phone (LifeWatch) equipped with sensors that enable patients to track their own heart rates, temperature, and other measurements. “It’s your own [general practitioner] in your phone, giving you exercise planning, physician control, and health data sharing,” Lotan said.