Vycor’s NovaVision Unit Announces the Commercial Release of NeuroEyeCoach™ — A Novel Saccadic Eye Training Therapy
NeuroEyeCoach™ Vision Therapy Is Available Direct to Patients via the Internet
BOCA RATON, FL–(Jan 23, 2014) – Vycor Medical, Inc. (“Vycor”) (OTCBB:VYCO), a medical device company with a suite of FDA cleared products, announced today that its wholly-owned subsidiary, NovaVision has launched the first commercial release of its new saccadic eye training therapy which will be marketed in the U.S. as NeuroEyeCoach™. The therapy is now available through the web sitewww.NeuroEyeCoach.com.
To carry out normal daily tasks, such as finding an object at home or on a supermarket shelf, one needs to make effective eye movements. Unfortunately, normal eye movements are also affected after brain injury making it difficult to integrate visual information and adding to the problems of blindness. Training is needed for patients to learn to make effective use of their eye movement again. NeuroEyeCoach™ has been specifically developed with world-renowned professors in the field to increase the efficiency of eye movement and train the patient to make the most of their remaining vision.
NeuroEyeCoach™ addresses an enormous worldwide market that currently is largely not addressed. It is estimated that in the U.S. alone, there are over 8 million Americans who have suffered a stroke and there are more than 700,000 new stroke cases occurring annually. About 30% of patients with acquired brain injury suffer from visual disorders with stroke being the most frequent cause.
NeuroEyeCoach™ is an innovative program which evolved from Professor Zihl’s (a NovaVision Scientific Advisor) extensive research and pioneering of a computer-based saccadic treatment approach which has been the subject of numerous studies. NeuroEyeCoach™ distills all of Professor Zihl’s clinical findings into one comprehensive therapeutic product for improving a patient’s ability to scan their environment more efficiently.
NeuroEyeCoach™ is the first commercially available saccadic eye training therapy offered via the Internet direct to patients at home. The program is designed to:
- Provide meaningful improvement in visual search performance resulting in improvements in navigation skills and object finding.
- Increase the efficiency of a patient’s eye movement and re-train the patient’s ability to make most of their remaining vision
- Be carried out in comfort at home on patient’s computer; the program is intuitive and user friendly and has been designed not to be overly taxing and can be completed in 2-4 weeks
- Have a real positive impact on activities of daily living.
At www.NeuroEyeCoach.com, information can be found on the therapy and patients can register and download the program. The therapy is delivered over the Internet, allowing for the patient to complete the training in the comfort of their home. NeuroEyeCoach™ can also be provided as a clinic-based multi-user device. The device will enable healthcare professionals to provide the therapy to patients under supervision. Alternatively, clinics can use the device to enable patients to try out the therapy while in the clinic. Patients can then be referred to NovaVision for completion of the NeuroEyeCoach™ therapy at home.
Commenting on the announcement, David Cantor, President of Vycor, stated, “We believe today’s launch of NeuroEyeCoach™ is a game changer for Vycor. The therapy addresses a very substantial and under-served market. NeuroEyeCoach™ has been designed and developed to meaningfully improve a patient’s ability to scan their environment, resulting in a very positive impact on their ability to deal with every day living. We believe there are literally millions of people worldwide who could benefit from this therapy.”
Vycor’s wholly-owned NovaVision subsidiary is the worldwide leader in the field of neurologically-induced vision loss. In addition to NeuroEyeCoach™, NovaVision markets a non-invasive, computer-based light stimulation therapy called Vision Restoration Therapy (VRT™), which is the only medical device aimed at the restoration of vision for neurologically induced vision loss which has FDA 510 (K) clearance to be marketed in the U.S.
The NeuroEyeCoach™ therapy is highly complementary to VRT™. The two therapies address different visual disabilities each of which results from neurological damage-induced vision loss — a loss of visual field as well as difficulty with eye movement, affecting the ability to integrate visual information. VRT provides partial restoration of the patient’s lost visual field. NeuroEyeCoach™ has been specifically developed to increase the efficiency of eye movement and re-train the patients’ ability to integrate visual information between the left and right hand side.
The Company is in parallel actively working on re-engineering its VRT to also enable it for direct to the patient Internet delivery and to streamline a number of business processes related to the delivery and servicing of patients, although the therapy itself will remain unchanged. Once completed, NovaVision plans to offer both NeuroEyeCoach™ and VRT alongside each other in one therapy suite creating the most robust, affordable, Internet-based visual therapy solution targeted at neurologically induced vision loss.
NeuroEyeCoach™ is a result of collaboration between Vycor management, its Chief Scientific Officer Prof. Arash Sahraie, (Chair in Vision Sciences, College of Life Sciences and Medicine at the University of Aberdeen) and Josef Zihl and the rest of its world class NovaVision Scientific Advisory Board.
About Vycor Medical, Inc.
Vycor Medical, Inc. (“Vycor”) is dedicated to providing the medical community with innovative and superior surgical and therapeutic solutions and has a growing portfolio of FDA-cleared medical solutions that are changing and improving lives every day. The Company operates two wholly-owned business units: Vycor Medical and NovaVision, both of which adopt a minimally or non-invasive approach. Both technologies have exceptional sales growth potential, address large potential markets, have the requisite regulatory approvals and are commercialized and generating revenue.
Vycor Medical’s flagship, ViewSite™ Surgical Access Systems (VBAS) is a suite of clear cylindrical minimally invasive disposable devices that hold the potential for speedier, safer and more economical brain surgeries and a quicker patient discharge. VBAS is designed to optimize neurosurgical site access, reduce patient risk, accelerate recovery and add tangible value to the professional medical community. Vycor Medical is ISO 13485:2003 compliant, has FDA 510(K) clearance for VBAS for brain and spine surgeries and regulatory approvals for brain surgeries in Australia, Canada, China, Europe, Japan, Korea and Russia. For an overview of Vycor Medical’s VBAS see http://player.vimeo.com/video/39766887
NovaVision develops and provides science-driven neurostimulation therapy and other medical technologies that help improve and partially restore sight in patients with neurological vision impairments. The company’s proprietary Visual Restoration Therapy® (VRT) platform is clinically supported to improve lost vision resulting from stroke, traumatic brain injury (“TBI”), or other acquired brain injuries. VRT is the only FDA 510K cleared medical device in the U.S. aimed at the restoration of vision for neurologically induced vision loss and can be prescribed by any ophthalmologist, optometrist, neurologist or physiatrist. VRT also has CE Marking for the EU. NovaVision also recently launched NeuroEyeCoach™, a new Internet-based “direct to the patient” saccadic eye training program. The Company also provides Neuro-Eye Therapy (NeET) in the EU, aimed at increasing visual sensitivity deep within the field defect. For an overview of NovaVision see: http://player.vimeo.com/video/39765566
For the latest information on the company, including media and other coverage, and to learn more, please go online at www.vycormedical.com or www.novavision.com.
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Information in this document constitute forward-looking statements or statements which may be deemed or construed to be forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The words “forecast”, “anticipate”, “estimate”, “project”, “intend”, “expect”, “should”, “believe”, and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements involve, and are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which could cause Vycor Medical’s actual results, performance (financial or operating) or achievements to differ from the future results, performance (financial or operating) or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. The risks, uncertainties and other factors are more fully discussed in Vycor Medical’s filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. All forward-looking statements attributable to Vycor Medical herein are expressly qualified in their entirety by the above-mentioned cautionary statement. Vycor Medical disclaims any obligation to update forward-looking statements contained in this estimate, except as may be required by law.
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