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GOGGLES DEVELOPED BY FRENCH INVENTORS CAN RECOGNISE EARLY STAGES OF PARKINSON’S AND ALZHEIMER’S A team of French and Belgian inventors has developed a pair of goggles to track eye movements
and interpret results to better diagnose certain neurological conditions. Asking patients to follow the movement of a pencil with their eyes has long been a diagnostic tool for neurologists,
especially for disorders such as Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s. With the so-called ‘brain stethoscope’, a 10-minute session will see the machine note hundreds of bio-markers, which it then
compares with data developed through 60 years of research in the area. Read more: Alzheimer’s treatment used in US fails to convince EU authorities DIAGNOSING BRAIN CONDITIONS As well as for
diagnosis, the goggles can be used in follow-up visits to give a precise picture of disease evolution. The company behind the goggles is neuroClues. Its CEO, Antoine Pouppez, cited EU
figures that one in three people will have a neurological condition at some point in their life, and that around 30% of these are badly diagnosed, or diagnosed too late for treatment to
lessen the impact of the disease. “Eye movements are actually the most rapid of human movements,” Mr Pouppez said. FRENCH HOSPITALS’ REVOLUTIONARY EXOSKELETON ENABLES WHEELCHAIR-BOUND
PATIENTS TO WALK “There are usually at least three eye movements a second and by using our device and software to see how the eyes move, we are able to diagnose people with very early
symptoms of Parkinson’s, for example, five years before a positive diagnosis without the device.” THE FUTURE FOR NEUROCLUES The goggles, which have been used in medical research departments
during their certification process, will be rolled out to specialist neurologists in French university hospitals this year. “Typically, the patients who use the device have been referred by
a family doctor after complaining they are not feeling quite right” said Mr Pouppez. “Using our machines, the specialist will be able to diagnose with greater certainty, and treatments will
be able to start earlier if needed.” A similar machine, specialising in diagnosing brain injuries from concussion, has been developed by competitors in the United States, where long-term
injuries resulting from repeated concussions suffered by American football players have become public concerns. Mr Pouppez said some researchers had started using the neuroClues device for
work on concussion too. An Italian researcher partnered with the firm to develop normative data bases for Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, cerebellar syndromes, myasthenia, and
myopathies. Read more: ‘Medicines to avoid in 2024’ list published by French medical review US TRIALS FOR NEUROCLUES DEVICE Certification of the device took just four years due to
streamlined procedures to promote innovation. At the same time as the EU certification process, the company also started a process in the US, which is about to be completed. Mr Pouppez has
worked in medical technology companies for 20 years and met his two co-founders, Pierre Pouget, a research director at France’s CNRS research body, and Dr Pierre Daye, an engineering science
specialist, through his work. With around 30 staff, the firm is looking for a final €3million to complete its €10million second-round fundraising so that it can accelerate sales and
manufacturing.