The Villages Health and elminda joint Study Receives Erickson Foundation Award for Excellence in Aging Research at 2018 APHA Annual Meeting


HERZLIYA, Israel and THE VILLAGES, Fla., Nov. 01, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- elminda Ltd., an emerging medical technology company dedicated to paving a path to better brain health by integrating big-data repositories, artificial intelligence (“AI”) and machine-learning algorithms with its ground-breaking Brain Network Analytics (“BNA”) platform, is pleased to announce that a manuscript, entitled “Evaluating Brain Health: Early Findings on the Utility of a Novel Technology to Access Brain Health in Late Life,” will receive the prestigious Erickson Foundation Award for Excellence in Aging Research at the upcoming 2018 American Public Health Association (“APHA”) annual meeting being held November 9-17 in San Diego, California.

The award-winning manuscript highlights the results of a study to evaluate the capability and potential of BNA to reliably assess cognitive function in older adults, distinguish normal cognitive decline from the early stages of abnormal disease process, and detect cognitive deterioration over time. In the study, the potential for utilizing BNA assessment for early detection of brain disorders, such as Alzheimer’s Disease (“AD”) and Mild Cognitive Impairment, and for characterizing significant differentiation between healthy aging brains and those experiencing adverse outcomes, was shown. Implications for future research, policy and practice were also discussed.

The study reflects a unique collaboration between corporate-community and academic partners that is vital to robustly demonstrating the BNA’s real-world utility.  

“We are deeply honored that the APHA Aging & Public Health Section and the Section Award Committee have recognized The Villages Health and elminda joint research with this award,” said Ronen Gadot, Chief Executive Officer of elminda. “As awareness and acceptance of BNA among clinicians and researchers continues to grow, we believe it has the potential to become the go-to analysis tool to diagnose and early detect brain functional problems, as well as a standardize way to measure the impact of therapeutic intervention on brain disorders.”

“For diseases like Alzheimer’s for which there is no cure, but only disease-slowing treatment, detecting changes at the earliest possible signs may be critical in finding effective therapy,” said Carla VandeWeerd, Director of Research for The Villages Health and an Associate Professor at the University of South Florida, who serves as one of the study’s principal investigators. 

“Brain maps of people with depression may show different patterns that doctors could use in determining which medications may be best for treatment,” added Jeffrey Lowenkron, Chief Medical Officer for The Villages Health and a principal investigator in the collaborative study.

The Erickson Foundation Award for Excellence in Research recognizes high-caliber research that significantly advances the understanding of positive aging and presents research findings that can be translated into policies and practices that help older persons maintain independence.  “The research community around the country has validated the value of what we are looking for,” noted Lowenkron and “we feel very fortunate to have this technology in The Villages”.  The presentation to The Villages Health and elminda will be made during the Aging and Public Health Section Awards Ceremony on November 13, 2018.

About elminda

elminda is an emerging biotechnology company dedicated to paving a path to better brain health by integrating big-data repositories AI and machine-learning algorithms with its proprietary BNA platform.  BNA is an electro-physiology based functional brain mapping, imaging and monitoring technology for the early detection of potential abnormalities due to aging or incidence, as well as for monitoring the progress and impact of interventions, including lifestyle changes. elminda’s BNA technology is enabling the creation of new standards for the assessment and treatment of brain disorders such as AD, Depression and chronic pain. BNA is cleared by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and CE, and is available for commercial and clinical use in the U.S., EU, and Israel per specific intended usage per region. The Company is conducting programs with several U.S. psychiatric clinics to further establish proof of commercial viability of BNA.  

About elminda’s Wellness Program: The Next Level in Measuring Cognition and Brain Health

elminda’s brain health program is designed to help understand the health of our most important asset: Your Brain.

For our brain to perform effectively it uses highly complex neural networks. The interactions between these networks enable us to perform various important cognitive tasks throughout our life. BNA™ technology provides a simple and direct mapping of these electro-physiological networks through a quick, simple and noninvasive test. The result of the test is unique cognitive personal imprint, one that covers multiple brain functions including; perception, attention, memory and motor control, which when performed periodically, enable you to track your brain health over time.

About The Villages

The Villages, located in central Florida, is the largest older adult community in the world.  Its more than 125,000 residents have moved to The Villages from all 50 states in the U.S.  The Villages Health is a patient centered, primary care driven, community-based health system in The Villages employing more than 60 physicians. 

Forward-Looking Statements

This news release may contain certain forward-looking statements regarding elminda’s expectations for future events. Such expectations are based on certain assumptions that are founded on currently available information. If these assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may differ materially from those contemplated by the forward-looking statements contained in this press release. Factors that could cause actual results to differ include, amongst others, uncertainty as to the final result and other risks. elminda disclaims any intention or obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, other than as required by security laws.

For further Information, please contact:

Stephen Kilmer
Kilmer Lucas Inc.
stephen@kilmerlucas.com
646.274.3580