Project description
At-home device removes earwax safely
Recurrent cerumen or earwax impaction is the leading cause of treatable hearing loss globally, with approximately 15 % of the population suffering from it. Variable repercussions range from ear pain to speech disorders and depression. Treatment is uncomfortable for the patient, involving complex and long sessions, while appointments for specialists are difficult to book. The EarWay project allows safe, speedy and effective cerumen extraction at home through EarWay®HomeCare kit as well as by professionals with EarWay®Pro which have been tried successfully in 2000 cases. EarWay® products are produced by a leading innovator of ear-care solutions, which is targeting the European and US markets.
Objective
Approximately 1.1bn (15%) of the people worldwide suffer from recurrent cerumen impaction, being the 1st reason
worldwide of treatable hearing loss. Impacted earwax can cause uncountable symptoms ranging from ear pain, itching,
ringing (tinnitus) and discharge/odour to more severe diseases like hearing loss and eventually depression, paranoia,
impaired cognition and speech disorders, and consequently social isolation. Current professional tools are complex and
slow: many of these methods (e.g. irrigation) cause patient discomfort and are associated to treatments that are long (15-40
minutes) and often complex (e.g micro suction) therefore not viable for General Practitioners and only allowed for the
scarce Ear Nose and Throat specialists (ENT´s) associated with long waiting times for patients. To solve this, healthcare
organizations are promoting the empowerment of patients via the shift to homecare solutions.
Based on an innovative “release with a twist” principle, the products EarWay®Pro and EarWay®HomeCare are designed to
enable simple cerumen extraction and management of earwax impaction. Their background technology provides safe,
effective (87% success) and fast (90% reduced treatment time) devices that have been clinically validated in 200 successful
earwax removal cases by both primary carers ) and specialists. Moreover they return the power to the primary-care
professionals (EarWay®Pro) and the patient (EarWay®HomeCare) ultimately reducing the burden for the healthcare system.
EarWay® products are targeting a large market of €7.3 billion in Europe and USA alone, including a €5.8 billion HomeCare
market represented by over 122 million cerumen-impacted people and the €1.5-billion Pro market with over 900,000 target
physicians. EARWAYS MEDICAL LTD. is a leading innovator of ear-care solutions. Founded to enhance the well-being of
millions of children and adults worldwide, providing easy-to-use ear-care products for both clinicians and home use.
Fields of science
Programme(s)
Funding Scheme
SME-1 - SME instrument phase 1Coordinator
4809173 ROSH HAAYIN
Israel
The organization defined itself as SME (small and medium-sized enterprise) at the time the Grant Agreement was signed.