China’s recovery from its zero-COVID policy has failed to gain the momentum expected, with many experts predicting a slow or even negative growth rate. Further, policies designed to build a domestic next-generation sequencing industry and enable self-reliance across the board bodes poorly for companies such as Illumina Inc. and diagnostics manufacturers in the U.S. who may find themselves not just shut out of the huge market but facing stiffer competition in the U.S. and Europe from Chinese firms.

Philips’ $479M settlement for respiratory devices excludes personal injury claims

Amsterdam-based Royal Philips NV reported that it has come to terms with customers and end users of its respiratory equipment to the tune of $479 million, which will reimburse for the cost of these systems. The problem for the company is that the settlement does not affect any personal injury cases, and thus represents only a partial closure of a controversy that has dogged the company for several years. Philips has maintained that its own testing and testing conducted by third parties offers no evidence of harm associated with degradation of the polyester-based polyurethane (PE-PUR) sound abatement foam, although the testing seems to have settled none of the issues. Nonetheless, the company has agreed to an uncapped settlement that provides in excess of $479 million in cash payments to both users and the payers that covered the CPAP machines and other devices that used PE-PUR foam.

Nemaura raises $6.5M, eyes Saudi diabetes market

Nemaura Medical Inc. recently raised $6.5 million in non-dilutive funding through a clean debt facility with no warrants or convertible elements. The funding came from its existing lender is expected to fund Nemaura’s ongoing efforts to commercialize its daily disposable, wearable glucose sensors.

Wearoptimo plans further protection for its microwearable health sensors

Wearoptimo Pty. Ltd. reported the publication of a patent application for its method and system for analyzing measurements from a wearable patch with sensors connected to microstructures that when applied to the skin penetrate the stratum corneum and enter the viable epidermis. Stimulatory signals (mechanical, magnetic, thermal, electrical, electromagnetic, and/or optical) can optionally be applied to one or more of the microstructures, depending on the nature of the measurement process being performed. Measurements are analyzed using at least one model to determine an indicator at least partially indicative of a physiological state.

Real-time smartphone app from AI-Stroke uses AI to detect stroke

AI-Stroke SAS is developing an artificial intelligence (AI)-based application able to detect strokes in real time using a simple smartphone or a tablet. The company has just won an award in the i-Lab 2023 innovation competition, supported by the French Ministry of Research and sovereign bank Bpifrance SA. “We use the latest AI and computer vision technology to replicate a neurologist’s expertise immediately anywhere, whereas non-specialists can make diagnostic errors up to 50% of the time,” Cédric Javault, CEO and co-founder of AI-Stroke SAS, told BioWorld.

Also in the news:

 Asensus Surgical, Celularity, Centinel Spine, Gradient Denervation Technologies, Havencrest, Heartsciences, Medphy Technologies, Perimeter Medical Imaging, Polarean, Positron, Procyrion, Shape Memory Medical, Silony Medical, Tekton Research, Veracyte, Vida