A drug-free pain reliever | Specialty meds delivered by drone

A drug-free pain reliever

EVANSTON, IL–A research team at Northwestern University has developed a small, flexible implant that relieves pain on demand without the use of drugs. The water-soluble device works by wrapping around nerves to deliver precise, targeted cooling, which numbs nerves and blocks pain signals to the brain. After the device is no longer needed, it naturally absorbs into the body.

Specialty meds delivered by drone

CHARLOTTE, NC–Novant Health has formed a health-care collaboration that offers long-range drone deliveries in North Carolina from a distribution center in Kannapolis. Novant is working with drone delivery company Zipline to fly specialty medications to patients, increasing access to health care for the community. Organizations and their customers can receive deliveries in as little as 15 minutes.

Digital platform for people with substance use disorders launches

MINNEAPOLIS, MN–Kyros, a digital platform designed to help people with substance use disorders in the recovery process, has officially launched. Kyros operates as a marketplace model by facilitating interactions between providers and patients. It then bills insurance companies directly and pays the provider from that. The launch follows a $4.4 million funding round led by Rally Ventures.

5 Cincinnati high schoolers win Young Entrepreneurs of Color pitch contest

CINCINNATI–Five teen entrepreneurs won a pitch competition for Black and Latinx high school students on June 10. The group’s business idea was HOS+, which aims to improve patient care and experience in hospitals and health care facilities by improving communication between doctors and patients, facilitating transportation to and from appointments and providing upscale dining options for patients. The team was one of six to participate in Young Entrepreneurs of Color. Overall, 27 students were selected from across Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky to participate in the competition created by the Abercrumbie Group, a Cincinnati-based event management firm.

Researchers tackle infection from mosquitos

PITTSBURGH, PA–We may not have found a way to rid the world of mosquitos yet but scientists are working on a therapeutic aimed at preventing infection from the viruses they carry. Researchers from the University of Pittsburgh and Washington University School of Medicine are using a $14.5 million grant from the Department of Defense to develop a therapeutic that could work on three viruses: Eastern equine encephalitis, Venezuelan equine encephalitis, and Western equine encephalitis.