Co-Founded by Dr. Sam van Bohemen and Dr. David Cardoso, Nuroflux’s mission is to improve stroke patient outcomes with continuous monitoring technologies that enable the real-time detection of neurological deterioration.

Stroke, caused by a sudden restriction in brain blood flow, is the second leading cause of death and third leading cause of disability worldwide. In Australia, a stroke occurs every 19 minutes and the total economic impact is estimated to be $32 billion annually. With an aging population, the incidence of stroke and its associated impact are expected to increase.

Following a suspected stroke, a patient will be rushed to hospital where they will have a computed tomography (CT) scan to confirm the diagnosis. Patients will then receive treatment to restore the interrupted brain blood flow. In the acute phase (first 72 hours) patients are at risk of neurological deterioration (e.g., re-occlusion or haemorrhagic transformation) which occurs in up to 40% of patients. However, due to radiation exposure, CT scans are only performed every 24 hours and there is currently no continuous monitoring of patients. Standard care relies on routine nursing assessments which are subjective, intensive (e.g. every 15 minutes for the first two hours), operationally burdensome, distressing for patients and ineffective in sedated or unconscious patients. Consequently, neurological deterioration can go undetected contributing to poor patient outcomes.

Nuroflux endeavours to establish the first clinical mechanism for long-term, objective, and continuous monitoring of stroke patients to detect neurological deterioration in real-time. The Nuroflux device is a wearable medical device that provides continuous monitoring of brain blood flow via a proprietary electrocardiogram-based methodology termed the electrocardiography brain perfusion index (EBPi) and brain activity via quantitative electroencephalography (qEEG). This will enable real-time detection of neurological deterioration, allowing patients to receive faster treatment, leading to improved patient outcomes. Nuroflux are currently conducting a clinical trial (CONNECT Study) at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Sydney, in partnership with The George Institute For Global Health to demonstrate that their device can detect neurological deterioration in hospitalised ischemic stroke patients.

Nuroflux are also conducting several other studies to further validate their technology and investigate additional applications. Due to the low cost and portable nature of the device there is scope for the device to be used in other areas of the stroke workflow such as pre-hospital (e.g., ambulances) and at-home and also in other neurological disorders including traumatic brain injury and delirium.