Teams pitch their products in Medical Device Innovation Challenge

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Six medical-device startup companies are hoping to win some funding after making their product pitches at the Medical Device Innovation Challenge.

The pitch event took place Friday afternoon at the CNY Biotech Accelerator at Upstate Medical University, located at 841 E. Fayette St. in Syracuse. The CNY Biotech Accelerator sponsors the competition.

A panel of judges assessed how well the startups highlight consumer need, product benefit, potential market, and other issues. The panel will also select a winning team.

The startups are developing such products as a breast pump, breath-powered video controller, and a shoulder-mounted portable IV system.

Participants and products

• CathBuddy Inc., of Woodbury on Long Island is making reusable urinary intermittent catheters system for people with a neurogenic bladder — or the loss of bladder control due to brain or spinal cord or nerve problem.
• Halamine Inc. of Ithaca is working to develop a new category of “hydrogel skin” coated urinary catheters with improved infection control.
• Liberation Lactation of Syracuse is developing a breast pump that women can use while involved in daily activities, whether at the workplace or at home. The product’s goal is to “eliminate the time women must spend solely on pumping.”
• ZephyRx of Albany designs breath-powered video game controllers so popular video games can be used in respiratory therapy for conditions that include pneumonia, asthma, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
• MedUX of Syracuse is creating a shoulder-mounted portable IV system (called L-IV, for Liberating Intravenous) that allows people in hospital settings or disaster situations to get IV treatment “comfortably and efficiently” without being tethered to an IV pole.
• Revital Therapeutics of New Jersey is a tissue engineering company that works at creating off-the-shelf tissue grafts for a wide range of conditions and surgical procedures.

Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com