The final conference of the Medtech4 Europe Interreg Europe project took place on 14-15 June 2022. The event took place in Milan, Italy, hosted by the Technologies for a Living Environment Cluster. The meeting, which summarised the exchange of experiences between project partners and stakeholders, was held for the first time since 2020 with in-person participation and associated online streaming.
14 June
Clinical trials and their evaluation in relation to MEDTECH and personalised medicine with MEDTECH were the main topics of the first day. As a result, the programme for the day was as follows:
The day started with visits to clinical centres. We started with a presentation of the Villa Beretta Rehab Center and IRCSS E.Medea from the Lombardy region.
From 9.45 a.m. we heard the presentation “Robotics and medical technology in post-stroke patients” by Dr Franco Molteni at the Villa Beretta Rehab Center. We then visited the technological laboratories. The next speaker was Dr Massimo Molteni from 11.30 a.m., who gave a presentation on “E-health in the developmental age: prevention, diagnosis and (re)habilitation”.
After the morning programme, we had lunch together at the Politecnico Lecco Campus Bistrot in Milan.
In the afternoon block, we were first introduced to the National Research Council (CNR) and the Politecnico, and the discussion on future projects started. We talked about technologies and clinical trials to see how we can address these challenges. The hosts took us to the laboratories where ongoing projects and those in the experimental stage are taking place.
Towards the end of the technical part of the day, we boarded a bus to Varenna where we were given the opportunity to tour the city and were then hosted for a welcome dinner.
15 June
We started the morning by registering for the EXPO, which was held in Palazzo Lombardia at the same time as the conference.
The meeting started at 10:00 with the opening by Cristina De Capitani, Cluster Manager (Custer TAV – TechForLife). Then we heard the welcome speech of Maurizio Crippa, President of Custer TAV – TechForLife, Ana Mihaljevic, Policy Officer (Interreg Europe Joint Secretariat), presented the current state of play of Interreg Europe and finally the project lead partner Céline Quester (Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Region) gave an overview of the current state of play of the Medtech4 Europe project.
The round table discussions started at 11:00. There were three round table discussions on three topics.
The first session was on “Exchange of experience between regions to improve the promotion of innovation” and was moderated by Dr. Giuseppe Andreoni – Professor at the Department of Design, Politecnico di Milano.
During the first round table, participants discussed how to effectively promote innovation in the field of medical technology. The adoption of the CEA Technology Innovation Showroom initiative in the South Transdanubian region was a good example, and the importance of a multidisciplinary approach to clinical trials was also mentioned.
The first round table was attended by Edina Szabó-Melegh, Assistant Professor at the Department of Biophysics, Faculty of Medicine, University of Pécs, Marco Bernasconi (CEO – FlaNat Research Italia Srl), CEO – FlaNat Research Italia Srl and Jacqueline Fritz (Project consultant, Steinbeis Europa Zentrum), Project consultant – Steinbeis Europa Zentrum.
The second round table was organised around the theme “Supporting medtech SMEs through regional actions”. The moderator was Dr. Flavio Ventura (GM Conf Industries S.r.l).
From the discussion, we learned about support measures for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to take advantage of the new regulatory environment in each country. The subsequent presentations presented the SME perspective along the theme “Digital therapies for cognitive rehabilitation in the home”. Finally, we were also given an insight into the development of a non-financial support scheme for SMEs.
The participants of the round table were Izabela Czeremcha (Project Manager, Upper Silesian Accelerator for Commercial Enterprises Ltd -GAPR), Project Manager, Upper Silesian Agency For Entrepreneurship And Development Ltd, Heikki Kallasvaara, Senior Consultant – Helsinki-Uusimaa Region and Felice Catania, Senior Technical Support & Business Consultant – Astir S.r.L.
The third round table discussion focused on improving regional and European cooperation and its impact on future preparedness, addressing the challenges this poses in the field of medical technology.
The third and last moderator was Dr. Franco Molteni – Director of the Rehabilitation Department of Valduce Hospital.
Last but not least, the speakers were Yvo Graus, Chief Operating Officer – Brightlands Maastricht Health, Cristina Andersson(Senior Consultant – Develor Productions Oy), Senior Consultant, Dario Montermini(Founder – P.G.M.D Consulting), Founder, Daniëlle Curfs (CEO at Medace BV).
After the presentations we had lunch together and had the opportunity to attend the EXPO.
The following projects and partners were presented at the EXPO:
CALL HUB SMART & Touch-ID
In the SMART&Touch-ID HUB (Lombardy Region call HUB – 2014/2020 ROP ERDF) a collaboration started between IRCSS Fondazione Don Gnocchi, Università degli Studi di Milano-Bicocca and Astir srl during another project financed by the Lombardy Region (ABILITY – TeleRehabilitation; 2014-2020 ROP-ERDF) and developed with the support of the TAV-TechForLife Cluster is realised again.
The SMART&Touch-ID HUB operates through the launch of challenges in which the worlds of rehabilitation and technology development can work together to create and validate technological solutions (i.e., from wearable devices to persuasive games to digital solutions at various levels of immersiveness) to be integrated into the care pathways of people with chronic non-communicable diseases.
Official website: http://www.smart-touch-id.com/#/home
CALL HUB sPATIALS3
The sPATIALS3 project (Lombardy Region call HUB – 2014/2020 ROP ERDF) aims to develop improved agrifood production and innovative technologies for a healthier, safer and more sustainable food supply.
Cluster TAV – TechForLife played a supportive role in setting up the partnership, assisting the coordinators in identifying project partners and assisting with the collection of data and information necessary for submitting the application. This supporting role allowed the Foundation to involve 4 TechForLife clinical partners (Valduce Hospital – Villa Beretta, Nemo Clinical Centre, IRCCS E. Medea – Associazione La Nostra Famiglia, IRCCS INRCA) who enriched the project proposal by including the medical point of view. The presence of the clinical centres also enabled the planning of a validation and testing campaign of the project results extended to different age groups and types of frail individuals.
Official website: https://hubspatials3.it
HEALPS2
The project HEALPS2 (Healing Alps: Tourism based on natural health resources for the development of Alpine regions
– Interreg Alpine Space) aims at fostering the recognition of the Alpine space as a place of health promotion at global level for the sustainable development of Alpine regions. The main objective is to identify a recognized model for the sustainable exploitation of Alpine natural resources for health tourism. The scientific research will lay the foundations for the development of tools for tourist destinations and the peculiarities of the different territories and entities involved will be included in the model, to increase the effectiveness and practical usefulness of the proposed solutions. In this way it was possible to developimplementation tools oriented to the sustainable use and conservation of Alpine natural resources.
Official website: https://www.alpine-space.org/projects/healps-2/en/home
NETPOLARIS S.r.l – The.ADI – Winner of TECH FAST Lombardia
Electronic medical record technological platform specialized in the management of the processes of taking charge, planning and reporting of the residentials units (Residential Care Facility) and home care units (ADI).
Official website: https://www.the0.it/
IDROGENET S.r.l – Gloreha Opera: Gloreha devices represent a valuable aid to hospitals, clinics and rehabilitation centers activities: assisting the patient in all phases of treatment.
– Winner of TECH FAST Lombardia
With “Gloreha Opera”, the aim is to develop an advanced device for motor treatment of the entire upper limb and neurocognitive training, consisting of an ergonomic and integrated workstation that allows the full application potential of the robotic glove, of which Idrogenet holds the exclusive international patent.
Official website: https://www.gloreha.com/?lang=it
ASTIR S.r.l – Ricordo DTx – Winner of TECH FAST Lombardia
SME Astir Srl has entered the market of technological solutions for home-based cognitive rehabilitation thanks to a product it is developing as part of the RICORDODTx project, financed by the TECH FAST 2021 Lombardy Region call for tenders and which it is carrying out with the collaboration of Fondazione Don Gnocchi for the clinical aspects and Cluster TAV-TechForLife for the communication and dissemination aspects. The RICORDO platform facilitates the management of rehabilitation therapy by the clinician (doctor and therapist), allowing therapy to be customised to the individual patient.
Thanks to the RICORDO APP, installed on the patient’s mobile device, the patient is guided and monitored step by step along the therapy path.
Official website: https://www.astir.com/innovazione/astir-progetto-ricordo-dtx/
CORAPACK S.r.l – Development and optimisation of innovative processes for the manufacture of new flexible, multilayer, active and biodegradable packaging – Winner of TECH FAST Lombardia Development and optimisation of innovative processes for the manufacture of new flexible, multilayer, active and biodegradable packaging
The project starts with the idea of creating a prototype machine for the manufacture of multilayer packaging equipped with a cold plasma module for film activation pre-treatment and adhesion of the layers by reducing the use of glues or primers.
Atmospheric plasma treatment is integrated into the gluing lines to activate the substrate before the glue is applied, in order to promote the ‘seal’ between the two films.
The plasma cleans the surface and acts on its surface tension, ensuring maximum adhesion.
Official website: https://www.corapack.com/
BECOME S.r.l. – Virtual reality immersive experiences to relieve anxiety and stress, validated by multicenter clinical trials.
BECOME is a multidisciplinary hub for the innovation of psychological practices in clinical, organizational, sports and
wellbeing contexts. It designs and implements applications and protocols for Mental Health that use new digital technologies – mainly Virtual Reality, Augmented Reality and biosensory – intended for professionals and aimed at active learning, psychological wellbeing and the promotion of positive change for people.
Official website: https://www.discoverbecome.com/
MATH BIOLOGY – Non-invasive early diagnosis system
The Math Biology biotechnology, including biosensors and a cloud artificial intelligence application, enables a non-invasive Deep Metabolism Assessment (DMA) to support early diagnosis, personalized care, sports medicine & nutrition programs. Math Biology, accredited as an innovative start-up, levers the combination of different sciences, Biology contextualized to the human body, Physics, and Mathematical modeling.
Official website: https://mathbiology.tech/
CONF INDUSTRIES S.r.l. – Innovative system for negative pressure patient rooms ventilation “isolated” and real-time scheduling for Operating rooms
Since 1961 the company has been producing trolleys, containers and technical furniture in aluminium, steel, stainless
steel and polypropylene for internal logistics in a wide variety of industrial sectors.
Specifically, it operates mainly in sectors such as: textiles, hospitals, industrial laundries and hotels; it is the European market leader for the production of containers for the collection of confidential documents, as well as a trusted supplier of some of the largest cruise lines. It also produces turnkey operating theatres, taking care of the design phase up to on-site installation.
Official website: http://www.confindustries.it/it/index.html
FLOKY SOCKS S.r.l. – Innovative socks based on the principles of biomechanics aimed at preventing injuries by improving recovery and quality af life for those who practice sports
The FLOKY sock is an accessory designed for sport and for people who do sport. FLOKY exploits the principles of Applied Biomechanics to bring benefits, improve athletic performance and at the same time prevent body wear and injuries
during physical activity thanks to innovative screen printing applications
Official website: https://www.flokysocks.com
MOXOFF S.p.a – Moxoff S.p.a. developed a product to help doctors in better assessing the rupture risk of abdominal aortic aneurysms
Moxoff is a spin-off company of Politecnico di Milano, born in 2010 and providing innovative solutions based on
data science, mathematical modeling and optimization. Moxoff is a member of the TechForLife cluster. Moxoff has realized more than 300 cross-industry projects and solutions, in multiple real-world case studies. In the context of Medtech, Moxoff works on translational medicine, personalized diagnostics, and patient-specific treatment, leveraging the fusion of mathematical simulation and data science. In particular, Moxoff was involved in the first wave of Covid’s pandemic in a productive collaboration with Lodi’s hospital, implementing a tool to monitor Covid patients’ hospitalization, keeping the intensive care unit under control. In addition, Moxoff developed a product to help doctors in better assessing the rupture risk of abdominal aortic aneurysms. Moxoff was able to segment and reconstruct the patient-specific geometry of the aneurysm from clinical data. Personalized computer models of the blood vessels were generated and fluid dynamics simulations were leveraged to augment the information available for the clinicians to determine the best tailored treatment.
Official website: https://www.moxoff.com/en/
CNR STIIMA – PhiCube Device
PhiCube is a friendly portable robotic device for bilateral upper-limb rehabilitation, featuring a wide range of trainable functional movements. PhiCube is a robotic device for upper limb rehabilitation. Thanks to its peculiar design and set of optimized accessories, it allows a wide range of bilateral gestures. The coordination between the upper limbs can be customized according to the residual capabilities of the user. Modularity and flexibility make PhiCube widely accessible. Portability and adaptability facilitate personalized rehabilitation training in telerehabilitation settings.
Official website: https://www.phicube.it/
MIBTEC, Mind and Behavior Technological Center – Virtual reality, technology and behaviour research centre of the University Milano Bicocca
Mibtec provides knowledge and technologies to generate scientific research or business solutions centred on human
experience in virtual environments. It boosts and supports businesses ideas in the field of work, learning, sustainable and healthy behaviour, marketing and design to provide services and create products when the virtual experience is the essential variable. We present a few projects in the field of exposure therapy (public speaking anxiety), and health monitoring/improvement in neuroscience (evaluation and rehabilitation of cognitive performance through technologies).
Official website: https://www.mibtec.it/it/
CONF INDUSTRIES S.r.l. – Innovative system for negative pressure patient rooms ventilation “isolated” and real-time scheduling for Operating rooms
Since 1961 the company has been producing trolleys, containers and technical furniture in aluminium, steel, stainless
steel and polypropylene for internal logistics in a wide variety of industrial sectors.
Specifically, it operates mainly in sectors such as: textiles, hospitals, industrial laundries and hotels; it is the European market leader for the production of containers for the collection of confidential documents, as well as a trusted supplier of some of the largest cruise lines. It also produces turnkey operating theatres, taking care of the design phase up to on-site installation.
Official website: http://www.confindustries.it/it/index.html
FLOKY SOCKS S.r.l. – Innovative socks based on the principles of biomechanics aimed at preventing injuries by improving recovery and quality af life for those who practice sports
The FLOKY sock is an accessory designed for sport and for people who do sport. FLOKY exploits the principles of Applied Biomechanics to bring benefits, improve athletic performance and at the same time prevent body wear and injuries
during physical activity thanks to innovative screen printing applications
Official website: https://www.flokysocks.com
The Medtech4 Europe project is co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund and Hungary within the Interreg Europe Program