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This podcast's purpose is to bring together the field of neuroprosthetics/brain machine interfaces/brain implants in an understandable conversation about the current topics and breakthroughs.

We hope to replace needing to read scientific papers on new research in an easy to digest way.

People can share thoughts or ideas to facilitate 'idea sex' to make the field of brain implants a smaller and more personal space.

Jun 21, 2021

Blythe Karow is a medical device veteran who is now the cofounder and CEO of Evren Technologies, a medical device company making a wearable Vagus Nerve Stimulator to help with the problems brought about by Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

 

Top 3 Takeaways

  • Not only veterans but first responders often get PTSD and 1/9 women will have it at some point in their lives
  • Stimulating the auricular (ear) branch of the Vagus nerve has fewer side effects but with a calming effect on the body
  • Diagnosing and curing PTSD is very difficult and subjective

 

1:15 "Do you want to introduce yourself and the technology?"

2:30 "You spun out of the University of Florida and then you were able to license it, what did that look like? "

3:30 "So you have some background in medical devices, you saw the potential in this and then you were looking to do something new? 

5:00 "What were you looking for and what were the acceptance criteria?"

6:00 "So how does this work? What are some of the effects of vagus nerve stimulation?"

9:00 "So it is this calming effect, you're able to flip that stress response back to normal with the PTSD patients. Is that a one-time thing? Is that a one-time flip or does it have to be re flipped?"

11:00 "PTSD is very hard to quantify, right? How is that currently done?"

13:00 "So what are the current treatments for it?"

15:30 "So what's your device and how does it work? And how do you know that you're stimulating the Vagus nerve? "

19:30 "You guys are still in the prototyping phase and then you have to get FDA approval for this, what are the next steps for the company?"

21:15 "What are some I guess are your biggest challenges?"

23:30 "Would they have to get it as a prescription through a doctor? Would they be able to buy it on Amazon?"

24:15 "Is there anything that we didn't talk about that you wanted to mention?"