Stent implants: Nimble Diagnostics closes financing round of one million euros

With the funds raised, the start-up of the Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute (IGTP), the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya - BarcelonaTech (UPC) and the University of Barcelona (UB) intends to develop its technology against heart disease further so as to be able to commercialise it in the future. "This capital will allow NIMBLE to finish preclinical testing, consolidate the team, conduct regulatory studies and carry out the first clinical trial at the Germans Trias Hospital in 2024", explains Oriol Iborra, IGTP researcher and CEO of Nimble.

The goal is to complete preclinical tests in pigs this year to be able to start commercialising the technology in 2025. This is the first round of private funding for Nimble, which had already attracted public investment —half a million euros— thanks to CaixaImpulse, FIS, the Marató de TV3 and the Premi Societat Catalana.

Stents are one of the most widely implanted medical devices in the world, because of their ability to restore the proper flow of blood and other fluids. They are commonly used to treat cardiovascular disease and help prevent myocardial infarction or treat the patient's lingering symptoms. Unfortunately, however, once implanted they can become obstructed or damaged, although symptoms only appear when the stent has already lost 90 % of its functional capacity, and it is too late for healthcare personnel to prevent the patient's condition worsening.

The system developed by NIMBLE will make it possible to identify possible obstructions in stents quickly and non-invasively. The technology is based on using microwaves to monitor stent implants in patients with cardiovascular, vascular, renal or pulmonary diseases. The new device prevents the need for an invasive procedure called angiography, which consists in introducing a catheter into the artery to inspect the stent directly.

This will allow early treatments that prevent serious complications to be implemented, the pharmacological treatment of patients to be identified and optimised, symptoms to be correlated with stent function and patient management to be approached globally.

MEDICA-tradefair.com; Source: Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya · BarcelonaTech (UPC)