Dr. Amol Soin, founder of Soin Neurosciences
Dr. Amol Kher
The opioid crisis in the United States is an ongoing struggle for people’s lives and well-being. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than one million people have died of drug overdoses since 1999. In 2021 alone, 106,699 drug overdose deaths were reported. The age-adjusted rate of overdose deaths increased by 14% from 2020 (28.3 per 100,000) to 2021 (32.4 per 100,000). With these sobering numbers as a backdrop, Soin Neuroscience and its founder, Dr. Amol Soin, are pioneering pain treatment methodologies that bypass opioid dependence in hopes of achieving non-addictive pain relief solutions.
Dr. Soin is an interventional pain physician based in Dayton, Ohio. He received his medical degree from the University of Akron, followed by an anesthesiology residency at Rush University and a pain management fellowship at the Cleveland Clinic. He also has an MBA from the University of Tennessee. In addition to his clinical career, he has also been involved with a number of start-up companies in various consulting capacities.
Soin has a very clear vision and goal for his company: “We invented two things to treat pain. One is a spinal cord stimulator that can get pain scores down to 0 or close to 0 in different patients by customizing the signal to what the individual likes. The other is a ‘gel patch’, a new type of pain patch that rubs on like a gel and dries clean.’
Sewing products Spinal cord stimulator Functional outcomes to achieve patient-specific pain relief
Spinal cord stimulators for chronic pain are devices that are surgically inserted into the spine that deliver electrical impulses directly to the spinal cord to block pain. It uses electrical signals through a wire (wire) placed directly on the spinal cord. The lead has multiple electrodes that send electrical signals to the spinal cord. Normally, the spinal cord sends pain signals to the brain from the peripheral nerves. A spinal cord stimulator sends electrical signals to the spinal cord that effectively block pain signals from reaching the brain. It is a form of neuromodulation. Pain is a subjective experience shaped by the way the brain processes pain signals. If signals from the spinal cord are blocked, the brain actually perceives the experience of pain.
Much research into the engineering of this technology and the physiology involved has been done by laboratories around the world. Although there are risks, more than 30,000 devices are implanted in patients annually, according to the Cleveland Clinic. For many patients, this is a life-changing technology.
The hallmark of the Soin Neuroscience stimulator is the development of patient-specific customization of the pain-blocking signals that the device emits. It is like a fingerprint, tailored to each patient’s specific pain profile and physiological needs. This personalization is critical to achieve minimal pain outcomes for patients.
As Dr. Soin explained, “The key is finding the right signal. And that’s what Soin Neuroscience did. Currently, spinal cord stimulation devices send basic types of signals that work as flashes or beeps. We decided to send complex electrical signals to the spinal cord. The way we figured out what the right type of signal was by converting the spinal cord stimulation signals into something we all understood…we converted the electrical signals into a form of “noise”. Realizing that some sounds are pleasant (like Mozart) and others are not (nails on a blackboard), we decided to deliver complex harmonies to the nerves. The results were amazing.”
Soin Neuroscience’s other innovation is a gel patch that provides a topical pain relief solution. Unlike traditional patches, it is applied as a gel and dries clear, resistant to washing off with water and capable of delivering medicine for 6-8 hours. Its ease of application allows it to be used on hard-to-reach areas, offering potential relief for a variety of pain conditions.
From Clinic to Market: Overcoming the Challenges Facing a New Neuromodulation Startup
The motivation for the research and technology Soin Neuroscience is developing is driven by the need to address the opioid crisis, which Soin himself has seen firsthand in his clinical practice. “I started it after I realized that people were dying from opioid overdoses because we didn’t have great non-addictive pain management alternatives,”
But success does not come without challenges. Soin pointed out how the industry and the market present a number of tough hurdles for startups in this space. “New pharmaceutical price controls may limit potential growth. The FDA approval process is super expensive and time consuming, and clinical trials are complicated. It’s hard to compete with incumbent medical device companies. And navigating the insurance and recovery landscape is difficult.”
There is an interdependent interaction that startups in this space must navigate between regulators, large medical device and pharmaceutical companies, and insurance companies, all of whom have a say in determining the viability of a new product.
Over the next two to three years, Dr. Soin is targeting a number of milestones: progressing beyond proof-of-concept trials and obtaining FDA approval for their products, launching the gel patch, and seeking strategic partnerships to introduce the spinal cord stimulator to the shop. The company is gearing up for large-scale human trials and exploring ways to bring its spinal cord stimulator, TunedTX, to the healthcare market.
The growth and potential of brain and spinal cord machine interface technologies
Brain-spinal cord interface technologies, including in the neuromodulation space, is an active and ever-growing field.
Industry forecasts peg the growth of these technologies at a compound annual growth rate of over 15% and a total market size of over $15 billion by 2030. Advances in understanding brain physiology and the engineering behind the technology are pushing these devices beyond simple size , one-size-fits-all, for patient-specific solutions. This is exactly the direction Soin Neuroscience is taking.
And because of advances in machine learning and artificial intelligence, the next generation of brain-spinal cord machine interface and neuromodulation technologies will be even more advanced. Adaptive “smart” devices will respond in context to the development of disease progression, tailored to the needs of the individual patient. The quality of life impact on patients and their families will be enormous.
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