UCHealth, startup win grant for study of home monitoring of epileptic patients

FORT COLLINS  — UCHealth and EnlitenAI, an Innosphere startup based in Tracy, California, have been awarded a $150,000 Advanced Industries grant from the state of Colorado to study the applicability of a cloud platform for personalized management of seizures in epileptic patients, especially those with drug-resistant epilepsy.

Armed with the grant funding from the state Office of Economic Development and International Trade, a team of researchers and clinicians at UCHealth will lead efforts for the proof-of-concept study, which will evaluate how the accessibility of data from EnlitenAI’s cloud-based platform can be used in conjunction with its artificial-intelligence engine to enable neurologists to create patient-specific seizure management plans for timely intervention.

Many of these patients have a history of unpredictable seizures despite being on multiple anti-seizure medications. According to Dr. Gary Luckasen, UCHealth’s medical director for research in Northern Colorado, effective management of seizures requires more frequent monitoring of the progression of each patient’s neurological condition and a better visibility of how each patient responds to the specific combination of medications.

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“I am intrigued by the ability to create patient-specific treatment plans using data-driven guidance for drug titration,” said Dr. Sean Pauzauskie, a neurologist at UCHealth’s Poudre Valley Hospital in Fort Collins, in a news release. “To date, drug-titration efforts have primarily relied on a trial-and-error-based approach, which can take quite a long time. The sooner we can get the patient on the correct medication, the better it will be for the patient and their caregivers. We hope this observational study will help us get to that perfect match sooner.”

The EnlitenAI platform, called Neuroliten, monitors and records patients’ vital signs and other neurological indicators through the use of wearables, such as wrist devices and EEG headsets. Caregivers also provide valuable information about the patients’ condition, observed side effects and all details associated with seizure events. Neuroliten’s AI engine generates insights from the history of all seizure events using the data collected from devices and caregivers. The technology is designed to give physicians information about the seizures, any likely triggers or side effects, which can help build patient-specific treatment plans.

“This partnership will enable UCHealth to gather clinical evidence from its patients in real-world scenarios,” said Dr. Himanshu Misra, EnlitenAI’s co-founder and chief executive. “We intend to use this information to further refine the functionalities of Neuroliten, allowing for broad application of this program by neurologists when treating patients with epilepsy.”

EnlitenAI is a digital health startup that is in a cohort of the Fort Collins-based Innosphere Ventures nonprofit accelerator program aimed at using science and technology to improve health care delivery. 

“We are excited to introduce Neuroliten to help patients who are struggling with epilepsy,” said Mike Freeman, CEO of Innosphere Ventures. “Innovative technologies such as this that allow physicians to more rapidly treat chronic conditions is a big part of why we exist. We are grateful to the state of Colorado for the grant.”

Public-private partnerships are often at the forefront of cutting-edge advances in technology, and proof-of-concept grants are designed to help Colorado research institutions and their private partners speed up applied research, according to Rama Haris, senior manager of Advanced Industries at OEDIT. “The project being undertaken by UCHealth and EnlitenAI has the potential to transform the way seizures and drug-resistant epilepsy are managed. We’re excited to see what they accomplish with this funding and how their work helps transform the healthtech industry as a whole.”

Besides PVH in Fort Collins, UCHealth runs Broomfield Hospital, Longs Peak Hospital in Longmont, Greeley Hospital, Medical Center of the Rockies in Loveland, and seven other acute-care hospitals across Colorado, southern Wyoming and western Nebraska. The chain includes 29,000 employees and hundreds of physicians.