In this episode of Care Forward, we explore two fundamentally different approaches to vision restoration for the blind – implant-based solutions and non-invasive sensory substitution. We examine the journey of Pixium Vision, a pioneering French company that developed the PRIMA retinal implant system, which aimed to restore partial vision through a sophisticated microchip implanted beneath the retina. Despite promising clinical results and regulatory milestones, Pixium's story illustrates the immense challenges facing implant-based approaches, ultimately leading to their acquisition by Science Corporation in 2024. In contrast, we investigate the remarkable potential of soundscaping – a non-invasive technology that converts visual information into patterned sound, allowing blind individuals to perceive spatial information through hearing. We discuss groundbreaking neuroscience research revealing how this approach works with rather than against the brain's natural adaptations, activating the visual cortex through sound in both late-blind and congenitally blind individuals. Through comparing these approaches, we highlight how software-based solutions offer advantages in accessibility, cost, safety, and development potential over hardware implants. This episode challenges conventional thinking about sensory restoration and suggests that sometimes the most transformative healthcare innovations aren't about replacing damaged biology, but rather harnessing our remarkable neural plasticity to create new ways of perceiving the world. 👉 Full Show Notes: https://shorturl.at/Mx8uu About Care Forward: Care Forward takes you behind the scenes of healthcare's most promising breakthroughs. Join host Nina Bufi, a healthcare innovation expert, as she explores the technologies and innovators transforming patient care. Through in-depth analysis and compelling storytelling, each episode examines how cutting-edge solutions are addressing today's medical challenges. New episodes released every two weeks. Connect with us: LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/care-forward-podcast/): Support Care Forward: If you enjoyed this episode, please follow us and share with others passionate about healthcare innovation. Your support helps us continue bringing these important stories to light. Hosted by Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

In this episode of Care Forward, we explore the fascinating cultural collision at the heart of digital therapeutics through the remarkable story of Limbix, a company that successfully bridged Silicon Valley's tech innovation with healthcare's clinical rigor. Nina takes us deep into the adolescent mental health crisis, where skyrocketing depression rates collide with severe access limitations, creating an urgent need for new solutions. We learn how Limbix's digital therapeutic SparkRx transformed adolescent depression treatment by combining cognitive behavioral therapy with sophisticated engagement techniques borrowed from consumer technology. The episode follows Limbix's journey from founding through acquisition, revealing how they achieved impressive clinical outcomes and engagement metrics with significantly less capital than competitors. Whether you're a healthcare professional, tech innovator, or industry leader, this episode offers valuable insights into what's possible when organizations transcend the false choice between clinical excellence and user engagement. Join us to understand how thoughtful organizational design, user-centered development, and disciplined focus can create breakthrough digital health solutions that genuinely improve patients' lives. 👉 Full Show Notes: https://shorturl.at/x4lng About Care Forward: Care Forward takes you behind the scenes of healthcare's most promising breakthroughs. Join host Nina Bufi, a healthcare innovation expert, as she explores the technologies and innovators transforming patient care. Through in-depth analysis and compelling storytelling, each episode examines how cutting-edge solutions are addressing today's medical challenges. New episodes released every two weeks. Connect with us: LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/care-forward-podcast/): Support Care Forward: If you enjoyed this episode, please follow us and share with others passionate about healthcare innovation. Your support helps us continue bringing these important stories to light. Hosted by Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

In this episode of Care Forward, we explore the groundbreaking work of CUTISS, a Swiss biotech company revolutionizing burn treatment by growing patients' own skin in the laboratory. Nina takes us into the challenging world of severe burns, where patients face a grim mathematical reality: when burns cover significant portions of the body, there simply isn't enough healthy skin left to harvest for grafts. We learn how CUTISS's innovative denovoSkin™ technology can expand a small skin biopsy up to 50 times its original size, creating personalized skin grafts that more closely resemble natural skin in both structure and function. The episode traces CUTISS's journey from University of Zurich laboratories to clinical trials, highlighting founder Dr. Daniela Marino's leadership and the company's methodical approach to development. While clinical results show remarkable promise in reducing scarring and improving functional outcomes, we also examine the significant challenges ahead in automating production and scaling this complex biological therapy. Whether you're a healthcare professional, biotech innovator, or industry leader, this episode offers valuable insights into the intersection of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine, and how mastering nature's biological complexity could transform treatment possibilities for previously untreatable conditions. 👉 Full Show Notes: https://shorturl.at/TSesl About Care Forward: Care Forward takes you behind the scenes of healthcare's most promising breakthroughs. Join host Nina Bufi, a healthcare innovation expert, as she explores the technologies and innovators transforming patient care. Through in-depth analysis and compelling storytelling, each episode examines how cutting-edge solutions are addressing today's medical challenges. New episodes released every two weeks. Connect with us: LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/care-forward-podcast/): Support Care Forward: If you enjoyed this episode, please follow us and share with others passionate about healthcare innovation. Your support helps us continue bringing these important stories to light. Hosted by Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

This episode of Care Forward examines a fascinating neurological discovery: the profound connection between rhythm perception and reading ability that's reshaping how we approach dyslexia intervention. Nina explores how French digital therapeutic company Poppins is translating this scientific insight into an engaging treatment platform where children strengthen reading skills through musical play rather than clinical exercises. The episode unpacks promising clinical evidence, including a recent randomized controlled trial showing significant improvements in reading speed and phonological awareness among children with severe dyslexia. We also examine the complex business landscape facing Poppins - from their subscription model in the French healthcare system to the inherent tensions between sustainable growth and venture capital expectations for rapid scaling. This journey illuminates broader questions about healthcare innovation: How do we create interventions that children genuinely want to use? Can digital therapeutics meaningfully expand access to specialized care? And what challenges emerge when scientifically sound solutions developed within one cultural and healthcare context attempt to scale internationally? Whether you're a healthcare professional, parent, or innovation leader, this episode offers valuable insights into how rethinking therapeutic approaches through the lens of children's natural inclinations can transform challenging interventions into joyful learning experiences. Full show Notes 👉 https://bit.ly/41jklou Hosted by Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

In this debut episode of Care Forward, we explore how artificial intelligence is revolutionizing cardiac procedures through the remarkable story of Volta Medical, a pioneering healthcare startup from Marseille, France. I will take you deep into the world of atrial fibrillation (AF), a cardiac condition affecting 37 million patients worldwide. We learn how Volta Medical's groundbreaking AI software, AF-Xplorer, is transforming traditional cardiac ablation procedures by providing electrophysiologists with real-time guidance, increasing success rates from 50-60% to 88%. The episode covers the company's journey from its founding in 2016 to securing major partnerships with GE Healthcare, highlighting both their unprecedented clinical trial results and the challenges they face in scaling their innovation. This episode offers valuable insights into how the convergence of clinical expertise and cutting-edge technology can revolutionize patient care. It is also a rare example of flawless execution, from company creation up until clinical trial results publication in the most prestigious medical journal, Nature Medicine. Join us to understand the future of AI-guided medical procedures and the potential for breakthrough healthcare innovations to emerge from unexpected places. 👉 Full Show Notes: https://bit.ly/4k3i4Xk ----- About Care Forward: Care Forward takes you behind the scenes of healthcare's most promising breakthroughs. Join host Nina Bufi, a healthcare innovation expert, as she explores the technologies and innovators transforming patient care. Through in-depth analysis and compelling storytelling, each episode examines how cutting-edge solutions are addressing today's medical challenges. New episodes released every two weeks. Connect with us on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/care-forward-podcast/) Support Care Forward: If you enjoyed this episode, please follow us and share with others passionate about healthcare innovation. Your support helps us continue bringing these important stories to light. Hosted by Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

Care Forward – A Podcast on Healthcare Innovation 🎙️ What happens in the moments before a breakthrough? Those pivotal instances where technology and human ingenuity converge to transform patient care? I’m Nina Bufi, and I created Care Forward to take you on a bi-weekly journey into the future of healthcare. With over a decade at the intersection of cutting-edge technology and medicine, I’ve seen firsthand how innovation can save lives, restore dignity, and reshape healthcare as we know it. In each episode, we go beyond the hype to explore real-world medical advancements—the challenges, the breakthroughs, and the impact they have on patients and clinicians alike. This is more than a podcast—it’s a front-row seat to the technologies shaping the future of medicine. Whether you’re a healthcare professional, an innovator, or simply curious, join me every two weeks as we explore how medical breakthroughs are changing lives. The world needs us, and together, we can make a difference. 🎧 Subscribe now and be part of the conversation. Hosted by Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.