ROCHESTER, N.Y., April 01, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Given the current COVID-19 pandemic, the ability to monitor cardiovascular health in the home has become critical to reduce the burden on healthcare systems around the world. According to the American Heart Association, more than 80% of those over the age of 65 will have some form of cardiovascular disease (CVD) by 2035. Heart Failure, which is a chronic disease characterized by a weakened heart muscle, has a significant health and economic impact in the United States. It affects approximately 6.5 million adults and over 960,000 new cases are diagnosed each year.
Heart Health Intelligence (HHI) has designed and developed The Heart Seat™, a unique cloud-connected toilet seat-based platform that effortlessly captures clinical-grade and relevant cardiac data from the patient’s home, without any change in the user’s habits. HHI has partnered with Bemis Manufacturing Company to produce The Heart SeatTM, which will transform how CVD is managed and monitored.
HHI has closed its $2.2M Seed Round to support the commercialization of The Heart Seat and achieve FDA clearance. This round was led by Bemis Manufacturing Company, with additional investments from LaunchNY, RIT Venture Fund, Tech Coast Angels, Excell Partners, and Impact Capital of New York.
The Heart Seat has tested its cardiac measures in over 300 subjects in partnership with University of Rochester Medical Center and the results have been published in two peer-reviewed journal articles (2018 and 2019). The Heart Seat has the potential to improve the quality of life for patients by allowing them to track health changes in the comfort of their own homes without the need to change their behavior.
Khan Siddiqui, MD, HHI’s Independent Board Member, and founder of higi, stated, “Ultimately, this advancement for in-home technology will provide patients and their clinicians with information previously unavailable at an unprecedented scale. No other clinical grade technology so seamlessly integrates into everyday life.”
Bemis Manufacturing Company is the largest toilet seat manufacturer in the United States that is highly innovative and has significant experience with FDA regulated devices. “We are thrilled to work with Heart Health Intelligence on this unique and impactful product that can positively impact cardiovascular health and leverages Bemis’ track record of innovation throughout its 119-year history,” stated Nan Jiang, VP of Business Development for Bemis Manufacturing Company.
Nicholas Conn, PhD, HHI’s CEO, added “we are going to make a tangible difference in the lives of patients and healthcare providers. The strong partnerships we are forming now continue to add to our momentum and I’m incredibly excited for all the good that our technology has the potential do.”
About Heart Health Intelligence:
Heart Health Intelligence (HHI) creates healthcare technologies that enable daily effortless heart health monitoring. HHI was founded July 2018 based on research from the Rochester Institute of Technology and in partnership with the University of Rochester Medical Center. The HHI solution is The Heart Seat™, a cloud-connected self-contained toilet seat-based cardiovascular monitoring system that measures over 9 clinical-grade metrics. Visit www.hearthealthintelligence.com. Follow us on Twitter (@hearthealthinc) and LinkedIn.
About Bemis:
Headquartered in Sheboygan Falls, Wisconsin, Bemis Manufacturing Company is a major North American molder of diverse plastic products, using engineering-grade thermoplastics and commodity resins. As a proprietary molder, Bemis is the world's largest manufacturer of toilet seats. As a custom molder, Bemis is among North America's top non-automotive producers of contract plastic injection-molded components. The company serves a host of Fortune 500 firms in consumer and industrial markets throughout North, Central and South America, and globally in Europe, Africa and the Middle East. Bemis has more than 2,000 employees worldwide.