AiM Medical Robotics Partners with Brigham and Women’s Hospital for a First Human Clinical Study for MRI-guided Device Placement in the Brain

May 21, 2024

43 5 minutes read

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– Collaboration with

Bringham Women’s

Hospital to validate MRI-compatible surgical robot for deep brain stimulation (DBS) in Parkinson’s patients –

– Successful cadaver trial demonstrates precise delivery of bilateral DBS leads using real-time MRI guidance –

– Announced collaboration with Synaptive Medical to integrate neuro-navigation software, creating an optimized workflow for unparalleled precision and efficacy in neurosurgery –

WORCESTER, Mass.

,

May 21, 2024

/PRNewswire/ —

AiM Medical Robotics Inc. (AiM), developer of MRI-compatible intraoperative robotics for neurosurgery and other applications, today announced a collaboration with

Brigham

and Women’s Hospital (BWH)

and the

Surgical Navigation and Robotics (SNR) Lab at

Harvard

to validate their cutting-edge robot for deep brain stimulation in Parkinson’s patients. The study will take place in BWH’s

Advanced Multimodality Image-Guided Operating (AMIGO) Suite

, a state-of-the-art clinical research facility.

AiM also reported a successful cadaver trial at the

PracticePoint facility

, demonstrating precise delivery of bilateral DBS leads using real-time MRI guidance. Prior to AiM’s approach, DBS leads may miss the intended target area due to the brain shifting from the time of pre-operative imaging and surgery due to creating access holes in the skull. This demonstration highlights the robot’s ability to account for brain shift. Additionally, AiM announced a partnership with

Synaptive Medical

to integrate their Modus Nav neuro-navigation software with the robot, creating an optimized workflow for unparalleled precision and efficiency in neurosurgery.

AiM has partnered with the Surgical Navigation and Robotics (SNR) Lab at

Harvard

and entered into a clinical research agreement with the Clinical Trial Office at Brigham & Women’s Hospital (BWH). This collaboration builds upon the long-standing and successful joint research efforts of AiM’s CEO,

Gregory Fischer

, Ph.D., and

Pedro Moreira

, Ph.D. and

Noby Hata

, Ph.D. of the SNR Lab, with Dr. Moreira as the lead investigator for the trial at BWH. The team’s previous work includes a successful 30-patient trial for MRI-guided, robot-assisted prostate cancer biopsy. In this new endeavor, they plan to utilize AiM’s stereotactic neurosurgery robot to accurately deliver deep brain stimulation leads with real-time MRI guidance for patients with Parkinson’s Disease. AiM is thrilled to be collaborating with Dr.

Reese Cosgrove

, Head of Epilepsy and Functional Neurosurgery, on this groundbreaking project.

AiM Medical Robotics is bringing to market a compact, MRI-compatible surgical robot that facilitates intelligent intraoperative surgical planning and guidance through real-time soft tissue imaging. This innovative technology is crucial for tackling the issue of brain shift, which often leads to inconsistent and suboptimal outcomes in many procedures, as the target moves relative to the skull during surgery. It has been reported that 34% of deep brain stimulation lead placements require another surgery for removal or revision, largely due to missing the intended anatomical targets in the brain. AiM’s pioneering product for image-guided stereotactic neurosurgery is the result of approximately 15 years and

$15M

of NIH-funded academic research. The company is poised to introduce its approach to the

$4.3B

market, addressing challenges related to the efficient, accurate, and safe intracranial placement of neuromodulation, ablation, and drug delivery devices. By making intraoperative MRI guidance mainstream and routine, AiM aims to improve hospital throughput, procedural consistency, and patient outcomes.

Today, AiM announced that on

May 10, 2024

, the company conducted a cadaver trial in collaboration with the clinical team from

Brigham

and Women’s Hospital (BWH) at the PracticePoint Medtech

A

ccelerator facility located at

Worcester Polytechnic Institute

(WPI), where AiM is headquartered. During the trial, the team showcased AiM’s robot in a fully direct MRI-guided procedure for bilateral deep brain stimulation lead placement in a human cadaver, with the surgery performed by neurosurgeon collaborator, Dr. Cosgrove. The AiM platform demonstrated success in completing a full procedure entirely within the MRI suite, achieving high levels of efficiency and accuracy. Notably, the trial highlighted the system’s ability to identify and account for intraoperative brain shift, a phenomenon that frequently occurs during these surgeries and can impact outcomes.

AiM Medical Robotics also announced its collaboration with Synaptive Medical, Inc. (“Synaptive”), a

Toronto

-based Medtech company that provides solutions for surgical, imaging, and data challenges. Through this partnership, AiM and Synaptive have integrated Synaptive’s highly capable Modus Nav neuro-navigation software platform with AiM’s stereotactic neurosurgery robot, enabling enhanced visualization, navigation, and control. The platform utilizes intraoperative MRI updates to ensure precise targeting and MRI-based localization and tracking of AiM’s robot. By combining AiM’s MRI-compatible robotic stereotactic frame, Synaptive’s advanced navigation software, and intraoperative MRI, the two companies have created an optimized workflow that delivers unparalleled precision and efficiency for deep brain interventions. This collaboration marks a significant step forward in improving patient outcomes and advancing the field of neurosurgery.

About AiM Medical Robotics

AiM Medical Robotics is a privately held medical device company based in

Worcester, MA.

It is focused on the development of MRI-compatible advanced robotics that are precision-focused, portable, and can be readily used with any MRI scanner. Follow AiM at

www.aimmedrobotics.com

and on

LinkedIn

.

Forward-Looking Statement

This press release includes forward-looking statements based upon AiM’s current expectations which may constitute forward-looking statements for the purposes of the safe harbor provisions under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and other federal securities laws, and are subject to substantial risks, uncertainties and assumptions. These statements concern AiM’s business strategies; the timing of regulatory submissions; the ability to obtain and maintain regulatory approvals of AiM’s products; market acceptance of AiM’s products; AiM’s intellectual property; AiM’s reliance on third party organizations; AiM’s competitive position; AiM’s industry environment; AiM’s anticipated financial and operating results, including anticipated sources of revenues; AiM’s assumptions regarding the size of the available market, benefits of AiM’s products, product pricing and timing of product launches; management’s expectation with respect to future acquisitions; statements regarding AiM’s goals, intentions, plans and expectations, including the introduction of new products and markets; and AiM’s cash needs and financing plans. There are a number of factors that could cause actual events to differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements. You should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which include words such as “could,” “believe,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “estimate,” “expect,” “may,” “continue,” “predict,” “potential,” “project” or similar terms, variations of such terms or the negative of those terms. Although AiM believes that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, AiM cannot guarantee such outcomes. AiM may not realize its expectations, and its beliefs may not prove correct. Actual results may differ materially from those indicated by these forward-looking statements as a result of various factors. All such statements speak only as of the date of this press release. Consequently, forward-looking statements should be regarded solely as AiM’s current plans, estimates, and beliefs. AiM cannot guarantee future results, events, levels of activity, performance or achievements. AiM does not undertake and specifically declines any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect new information, future events or circumstances or to reflect the occurrences of unanticipated events, except as may be required by applicable law.

Contacts:

Gregory Fischer

, Ph.D.

Founder & Chief Executive Officer

AiM Medical Robotics, Inc.

LinkedIn:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregfischer/

Phone: (617) 203-5560

Email:

info@aimmedrobotics.com