Image Credit: BackBeat Medical
BackBeat® Medical in New Hope, PA is a subsidiary of Orchestra BioMed, Inc. BackBeat’s Cardiac Neuromodulation Therapy (CNT) is a patented implantable cardiac stimulation-based treatment for hypertension that the company claims immediately and substantially lowers blood pressure. The stimulation algorithms are designed such that they simultaneously modulate autonomic nervous system responses that normally drive and maintain blood pressure higher. This is explained in the following video:
According to a paper presented at AHA in 2017:
“The Moderato System (BackBeat Medical, New Hope, PA), is a dual-chamber, rate-responsive pacemaker implantable pulse generator (IPG), which incorporates PHC algorithms that pace the heart with a series of variably timed, alternating shorter (eg, 20–80 ms) and longer (eg, 100–180 ms) atrioventricular intervals. Details of PHC therapy optimization are discussed below; in general, the pacing sequence consists of 8 to 13 beats with the shorter atrioventricular delay followed by 1 to 3 beats with the longer atrioventricular delay. The device is active 24 h/d and paces the right ventricle on nearly every beat.”
BackBeat presented results from its Moderato trial at TCT 2018. Clinical results with 2-year follow-up from the European MODERATO I clinical trial showed that BackBeat® CNT can reduce systolic blood pressure measured in office by an average of 23.4 mmHg, an amount that has the potential to reduce risk of heart attack and stroke by at least 50%.
According to BackBeat, the technology can be readily incorporated into existing cardiac rhythm management devices such as pacemakers using standard implant and lead placement techniques. BackBeat has indicated that it is pursuing the CE Mark for its Moderato IPG.
The website for BackBeat is at: https://orchestrabiomed.com/technology/backbeat-cnt/