Clinical trial validates feasibility of Waterloo startup’s tech solution to life-threatening pressure injuries.
Moazam Khan (BSc '16, MBET '17) Alumnus
Faculty of Science and Faculty of Engineering
> Co-Founder, Curiato Inc.
> Velocity
It began with “Hack4Health” in 2015, where three Waterloo science students learned that bedsores were a critical issue for healthcare in North America costing seven lives an hour and up to $20B every year. Zied Etleb, Moazam Khan and Matthew Sefati decided to tackle the problem and develop smart products to prevent and manage pressure wounds. The co-founders called their startup company Curiato Inc.
Flash forward five years and Curiato has completed a clinical pilot of their novel skin-data platform that collects continuous patient data from a smart surface with built-in sensors. One of the first applications of this AI platform is to help prevent the development of bedsores.
The innovative system retrofits to existing hospital mattresses, and uses advanced sensors to detect biological factors – like moisture and heat. AI analyzes the data and predicts the potential for wound development and other conditions, delivering the information to caregivers in real-time, via a digital interface. As a result, front-line care teams can prioritize procedures and increase quality of life for at-risk patients.
Curiato partnered with Grace Health Centre in Toronto, Ontario, to conduct more than 100 in-hospital trials of its skin-data platform with high-risk patients. The project received a grant from the Centre for Aging and Brain Health Innovation's (CABHI) Industry Innovation Partnership Program, and is set to make a significant impact on the healthcare sector.
The platform collects continuous data to enhance the solution’s robust, predictive models and may also be extended to other applications in cardiology, patient safety, and infectious diseases.
Khan and his fellow co-founders are now working to secure international partnerships to support commercial growth, manufacturing and distribution in locations across North America and Asia, with guidance from world renowned scientists and recently appointed advisory board members, Dr. Thomas Stewart, former President and COO of Gaymar Technologies and Founder of the National Pressure Injury Advisory Panel and Dr. Cynthia Sylvia, former Clinical Affairs manager at Stryker.
