I-Corps: Telehealth nasoendoscope for remote diagnosis and therapy of ear, nose, and throat disorders

这个i-Corps项目的更广泛的影响/商业潜力是开发一种成本更低、性能更好的鼻内窥镜(鼻内窥镜)系统，用于诊断耳朵、鼻子和喉咙的情况。内窥镜主要有三种：硬质光学内窥镜、纤维内窥镜和视频内窥镜。那些广泛使用的具有成本效益的产品往往缺乏足够的性能规格和功能。目前，鼻内窥镜在手术过程中往往过于繁琐，结果的记录也很耗时。此外，目前的鼻内窥镜消毒困难且成本高昂。建议的设备是用户友好的设备，可以帮助合格的医务人员进行鼻腔诊断检查，并更快地达到高质量的诊断。这个拟议的项目探索了耳鼻喉科市场以及睡眠医学、言语和语言病理学以及兽医市场的实施和商业化机会。这项创新可以对患者的护理和安全产生重大影响，并减少长期护理成本和医疗浪费。这个i-Corps项目开发了一种利用通用串行总线(USB)供电和流媒体视频的鼻内窥镜。该设备由合格的医务人员用于可视化鼻腔内的区域，以用于诊断、跟踪和治疗生物反馈目的。新的鼻内窥镜系统包括软件，允许用户通过一根电缆为设备供电、观看和共享视频，大大简化了程序和后续文档。该设计允许实时共享程序并无缝集成到诊所的工作流程中。该项目以往的进展主要集中在电气设计的理论发展和实验验证上。这一努力将用于完善对产品与市场匹配的理解，并将进一步为开发路径和规范重点提供信息。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并已通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this I-Corps project is the development of a lower-cost, improved performance nasoendoscope (nasal endoscope) system for diagnosis of ear, nose and throat conditions. There are three main types of endoscopes: rigid optical, fiberscope, and video-endoscope. Those which are cost effective for widespread use tend to lack adequate performance specifications and features. Presently, nasoendoscopes are often too cumbersome during the procedure and the documentation of results is time-consuming. Additionally, current nasoendoscopes are difficult and costly to disinfect. The proposed devise is user-friendly device and can help qualified medical personnel conduct diagnostic examinations of the nasal cavity and reach high-quality diagnoses more quickly. This proposed project explores implementation and commercialization opportunities in Otolaryngology markets as well as Sleep Medicine, Speech and Language Pathology, and veterinary markets. The innovation can have significant impact on patient care and safety, as well as reductions in long-term care costs and medical waste.This I-Corps project develops a nasoendoscope utilizing Universal Serial Bus (USB) to power and stream video. The device is used by qualified medical personnel to visualize areas within the nasal cavity for diagnosis, tracking, and therapeutic biofeedback purposes. The novel nasoendoscope system includes software that allows the user to power the device, view, and share the video through a single cable, greatly simplifying the procedure and subsequent documentation. The design allows for real-time sharing of the procedure and seamless integration into a clinic's workflow. Previous progress on this project has focused on the theoretical development and experimental verification of the electrical design. This effort will be used to refine understanding of product-market fit and will further inform the development path and specification focus.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.