Prosthetics have come a long way since the days of
The Fugitive with Dr. Richard Kimble trying to track down a one-armed man. Ask Gordon Maniere and he will tell you there is still a long way to go, even with a man racing with prosthetic legs in the Olympics.
So the certified prosthetist is turning that journey into a start-up,
Advanced Amputee Solutions.
"No one has really tackled the problem of where the bone meets the prosthetic," Maniere says. "That's the biggest problem because the amputee won't wear the prosthetic if it causes pain."
Advanced Amputee Solutions is developing its I.E.P. technology, specifically a polymer that cushions the cut bone of the amputee. It applies exoskeletal principles endoskeletally, killing the pain problem at the point of contact. I.E.P. is applied during the amputation surgery so it protects the amputated bone and seals the bone marrow.
This eliminates the problem of trying to make a rigid tool (the prosthetic) comfortably fit with a human body that is never the same two days in a row. "The tissue is constantly changing shape everyday," Maniere says. "Eating salt can cause a wide variety of size in the tissue."
Maniere and his co-founder, Jack Wheeler, are working to build their start-up team and raise a $500,000 angel round of seed capital. Maniere will present his company's technology at the Michigan Growth Capital Symposium next week to help further its fundraising.
"It's really kind of a coming out party," Maniere says.
Source: Gordon Maniere, CEO of Advanced Amputee Solutions
Writer: Jon Zemke
Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.
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